When You Were Young
by ThatsInsanity.8
Summary: As a teen, you were infatuated with Laxus until he betrays the guild. You feel you can never forgive him, but then he disappears with everyone else at Tenrou. When they return, you find yourself falling for him again. You also find yourself the subject of a certain seith mage's advances. Stuck between the two, can you make a choice? Or is there another way? (ReaderxLaxusxBickslow)
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N: Hey! So this is the first story I've posted, I've been working on it awhile. The world needs more Reader stories! There are some slight event changes in this story, and a bit of an OOC Laxus. It's gonna be slow at first, and will end up as a bisexual/polyamorous relationship. I hope you all enjoy! Rated M- There will be lemons, eventually! :)**_

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 _"And sometimes you close your eyes_

 _And see the place where you used to live_

 _When you were young"_

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When I was a kid, I grew up with everyone being older than me at Fairy Tail. I had been a mage since I was little, but had joined when I was a teenager. At 14, I didn't have anyone very close to my age until Wendy joined, and she was still two years younger than me. I was in that awkward halfway point between childhood and adulthood. Younger me also had such a huge crush on Laxus Dreyar. With me being a storm mage, it was only natural that I gravitated toward him. He was not really nice to me, but I never cared. I always trained hard, and learned to control my magic, hoping Laxus would see I was strong.

I was a foolish girl. Laxus ended up betraying all of us, and made the guild fight each other. He had even attacked me when I personally confronted him before everything started. I talked to the Thunder Legion a little (even though they did not treat me very well, either) and they had bragged to me about his plan. Silly me thought that maybe I could change the dragon slayer's mind. Of course, he laughed in my face when I asked him not to go through with the Battle of Fairy Tail, even going as far as to hit me with a lightning attack. Luckily I was resilient against lightning magic, or else it would have done some serious damage. It hurt to know that someone I admired would do something like that. I was glad to hear Gramps exiled him when it was all over.

After he left, the Thunder Legion reached out to me to apologize. It took me a bit, but eventually I forgave them. They had all shown true remorse for their actions. We started hanging out a lot and quickly became friends. They were all so much older than me but we got along great. Bickslow and I hung out a lot, and it was always fun being around him. Freed taught me a lot about magic and runes. Evergreen was basically like a big sister. The four of us went on jobs together often, and I learned so much from them.

The group of outcasts often asked if I wanted to join the Thunder Legion officially, but I always refused. I didn't want to be a part of a team that was created for Laxus. I still felt resentment towards him. They were disappointed, but didn't try to change my mind about him. Well, except Freed of course. He insisted that Laxus was a good guy and often would tell stories of his "greatness". Regardless of that, and our difference in age, they always made sure I felt included in everything they did. I will be forever grateful for what they did for me.

I remember the events of Tenroujima well. It was 7 years ago. It had been a devastating event for those like me who did not go. I had been rooting so hard for Freed and Bickslow, and found out instead that they and everyone else had vanished. Including Laxus. I wasn't really sure why he would even be there. We had no idea what happened. The most powerful members of our guild were gone without a trace. It hurt me so deeply to lose my best friends in an event that was supposed to be safe and esteemed.

During those seven years after they vanished, Fairy Tail was no longer strong enough to keep up. We tried hard in the beginning to keep up the belief that they'd return. Macao stepped up to run the guild until Makarov would return. However, as the days turned into months and the months turned into years, our outlook was bleak. The other guilds like Lamia Scale and Blue Pegasus tried hard to help us find them in the beginning, but the searches became few and far between after a while. We eventually were forced to move into a lesser guild hall, since hardly any jobs ever came in. Still, I never gave up hope. I trained hard so that I could make sure to protect my guild, as small as it had become.

The new strongest guild in Magnolia, Twilight Ogre, learned the hard way that just because everyone else was gone, didn't mean they could mess with us. I had managed to scare them off enough to leave us alone. So, we sat peacefully in our tiny guild hall, the remainder of mages trying their best with the scarce amount of jobs. I got enough requests to get by with my strong storm magic. Often times I even helped Macao with the payments on our new building. Now, I was 21 and on the same skill level as Freed and the other s-class candidates. I had grown from a young, and slightly awkward, 14 year old and was now a confident mage. I was actually around the same age as the members of the Thunder Legion were when they disappeared.

"I can't believe it's been so long." I sigh sadly as I look at the picture hanging on my fridge. I was getting ready to leave to let everyone know I was back from my mission, and went to grab some food first. Of course, I couldn't help but stop and look at the photograph. In it, a younger me sat smiling while surrounded by the Thunder Legion. It was an old picture, but one of the few I owned. Reedus had given it to me after they disappeared and I cherished it.

I sigh, tearing my gaze away from the photo and grab some fruit from my fridge, eating as I get ready to leave. I walk into my living room, checking over my place to make sure I had everything. I was currently renting a nice two bedroom condo in town. It's a bit far from the new guild but I didn't mind. I could teleport after all, but the walk wasn't bad anyway. Many people were surprised to hear I could teleport like Laxus, but it had nothing to do with his dragon slaying magic. It was all lightning based. I snatched my bag from the coffee table and threw it over my shoulders.

On my way out, I glanced into my spacious spare room. It was full of as much of the Thunder Legion's stuff as it could possibly hold. That was the least I could do for them. I haven't given up the hope that they're still alive somewhere, so I keep some of their belonging for when they return. I sighed and left, locking the door on the way out. It's a beautiful day and I was in no hurry to get to Fairy Tail, so I decided to walk. _Wasn't like anything was happening today anyway_ , I think bitterly as I walk down the street. I had just gotten back from a week long mission late last night, and although I had heard another search party had gone out to look for Tenroujima, I doubted anything had come up.

As I walked, I put in my headphones and listened to some music. The path I take to the guild is usually quiet, and the closer I get the more deserted the roads get. I sing to my music softly as I stroll along. After a while, I finally reach the edge of town and start walking up the stone pathway leading to the guild hall. When I reach the doors I turn off my music and take out my headphones. There's an unusual amount of noise coming from inside. _The search group must have returned… But it's usually never this loud._ I think, and suddenly I realize what that could mean.

"It can't be…" I mutter, and I quickly push open the wooden doors. They make a loud noise as they swing open, and everyone goes quiet, staring at me. I stand there in shock, unsure if what I was seeing could really be true. The entire Tenroujima group was back, looking the same way they did when they left. I gasp, covering my mouth with my hand and tears begin falling from my eyes.

"(Y/n)! Is that you?" Someone shouts, and I see Bickslow and Evergreen running towards me, Freed following behind them.

"You guys!" I cry loudly, running and jumping into their arms. Freed quickly joins our group-hug and everyone is smiling and watching us. "I missed you all so much!"

They all laugh, and everyone quickly returns to their excited chatter and celebration. Sobs wrack my body as I hug my friends tightly to me.

"I can't believe you guys are back! Why do you look the same? Do you have any idea how long it's been?" I wipe away my tears as I pull back and look at the three mages I've missed for so many years. They haven't changed a bit. I'm now almost as tall as Evergreen and older as well.

"Seven years Stormy!" Bickslow says, his tongue rolling out of his mouth. I haven't heard that nickname in so long and it brings back many memories. His babies float around me, calling out my name happily. I smile and laugh. "You'll never believe it, it was crazy!"

"You're so grown up!" Evergreen smiles, grabbing my hand and twirling me. I'm wearing a tight fitting tank top and sleeveless vest, with shorts and my black boots. I've even accessorized the ensemble using a velvet choker with roses on the front to match the ones sewn on my vest. The outfit is a lot different from the baggy t-shirts and shorts I used to wear as a kid. "You've got a much better taste in fashion too. Wow, it's gonna be weird calling you little sis with you looking like this."

"How have you been (y/n)?" Freed asks. I feel overwhelmed and I run my hands through my (h/c) hair.

"Damn, I feel like I'm dreaming." I sigh. "It's been rough, but I've been training hard all these years. As you can see, Fairy Tail has gotten a lot smaller, but we get by. I actually just returned from a mission last night. When did you guys get back?"

"A couple days ago" Bickslow said "We've basically been partying at the guild nonstop the entire time."

"Awh man, and I missed it!" I pout. I could never truly take part in the parties at the guild many years ago, being as young as I was. I wasn't allowed to drink until I turned 16. "I've always wanted to drink with you guys."

"Well we haven't stopped partying yet! Better catch up." Cana shouts as she walks past us, handing me a drink. I laugh and chug it all down in one go.

"Damn sis!" Evergreen laughs "You really have grown up so much."

I wipe my mouth off and grin. "You guys have no idea!"

"So, it seems that you've become one of the strongest members of the guild." Freed comments as we move to sit down. I notice Laxus sitting a few tables away with Lisanna, Elfman and Laki and I frown.

"Uh yeah, I guess you could say that." I say distractedly. "But that's whatever; I really wanna hear about what happened with everyone. Also, why is he here?"

They look to where I'm pointing and smile. I can't help but be confused at their actions. Laxus looks over at us and I openly glare at him. I still hadn't forgotten what he did and it stung seeing him after all this time. He looks much more mature and almost humble and I can't help but blush. He was too fucking handsome.

"Laxus came to help us when we were attacked on the island by Grimoire Heart and Acnologia." Freed said. He starts telling me all about the events at Tenroujima and how they were saved by Fairy Sphere. Of course, he spent most of the story talking about how amazing Laxus was during everything.

"Yeah, Laxus really saved our asses." Bickslow laughs after Freed finishes his story, his babies repeating "Asses! Asses!"

"Oh, I see." I look away, not ready to deal with the conflicting emotions of seeing Laxus and learning about everything else.

"Man, seven years huh." Evergreen sighs, changing the subject. She had realized what a sore topic Laxus was for me. "I bet our homes and all our stuff is gone."

I perk up at that, suddenly remembering that I saved some of their more valuable items. "Actually, I kept some of your belongings! They're at my place. I didn't have a bunch of storage, but I figured you guys would like to have some stuff when you came back. I couldn't save your homes unfortunately…"

"Awh, you're so amazing!" Evergreen laughs, hugging me tight.

"I knew you guys would come back" I smile as she lets me go. "I never gave up hope."

"(Y/n), if I weren't broke I'd buy you some shots." Bickslow wraps his arm around my shoulder and I giggle. He still towers over me, and I practically drown in all his armor.

"How about an IOU?" I wink at him and his tongue rolls out of his mouth. The move, which use to amuse me, now makes me blush. It was almost provocative. I laugh again, moving out from under the seith mage's heavy arm and walk up to the bar. Kinana is busy making drinks with Mira, so I sit and wait.

"Hey." Someone moves next to me, and I glance over to see Laxus standing there looking surprisingly nervous.

"Yes?" I ask curtly. Although I'm happy to see everyone is safe, I'm still upset about how everything went down with the lightning mage. I can't bring myself to even pretend to be nice to him.

"Look, I just came to apologize. I know you'll probably never forgive me for what happened." Laxus says gruffly. "And that's fine. I don't deserve your forgiveness. I hurt you a lot." I stare at him in shock. That was the most he's ever said to me that wasn't yelling, and it made my heart ache. I realize he's trying to patch things up, but I can't help but be angry.

"I really don't get why everyone is acting like everything is cool, but I haven't forgotten what you did to us, to me." I say, looking away from him. "It's gonna take a while before I can even look at you without getting angry, so can you please just leave me alone? I need time to take everything in. Right now, I just want to enjoy having my friends back."

He crosses his arms and looks away from me "Yeah, sure. I understand. Just, know that I'm sorry. And I hope some day I can earn your forgiveness."

Kinana finishes helping Mira and comes over to us. I ask her for a round of shots for me and the Thunder Legion, and Laxus leaves. I sigh as I think about what he just said. It was completely unlike the Laxus I knew and I wasn't sure how to feel. _Why does he care about what I think anyway?_ I wonder as Kinana sets down the shot glasses and fills them.

When she finishes, I grab two in each hand and walk back to the table the Thunder Legion is at. We start talking and drinking, and I forget all about Laxus. I tell them about everything I've been doing since they left. Lamia Scale shows up when we're well into the day, and I start laughing and talking with everyone else. There was a lot to catch up on. I moved around the room, getting some time in to talk to everyone I had missed for seven years.

"So, I heard you've been a big help in keeping the guild safe and stable." Makarov says as I make my way over to him. He grins lecherously "And boy, you sure filled out!"

I laugh and roll my eyes "Perverted as ever, I see."

He chuckles and takes a drink from his mug "In all seriousness, I really want to thank you (Y/n). I'm so proud of the mage you've become. I would say you're on par with the Thunder Legion now."

"Yeah, I've been working really hard." I smile sadly "I knew that if something happened to the guild while you guys were gone, I could never forgive myself. So I trained hard so I could protect everyone."

Gramps smiles, giant tears forming in his eyes. I laugh "Calm down old man, it's not that big of a deal. Anyone else in my position would have done it."

"Yes, well now we're back," He lifts up his mug "and you can relax and enjoy yourself. You've earned it."

"Thanks Gramps." I smile and hug him. Before I leave, I stop and look around. "Listen Gramps, I wanted to ask you about something."

"Yes, I'm guessing it's about Laxus, correct?" Makarov says quietly. He sighs. "That boy has hurt you in the past. He's hurt all of us. Even I still feel dismayed when I think about it all. However… I can tell he has learned a very valuable lesson. After everything that happened, he's shown himself to be more mature. Granted, I still think he needs more time. I'll let him make amends with everyone, and himself, before I consider accepting him back into our family. Don't worry (y/n), nothing will happen."

I bite my lip, not sure what to think. There was so much to take in, so I simply nod and walk away slowly. After my conversation with Gramps, I need some fresh air. I see Bickslow laughing loudly with a shirtless Gray and Lyon. They wave to me as I walk up to them and I smile. It was funny knowing I was older than Gray now and I decide to tease him.

"How's it going, kid?" I laugh, ruffling his dark hair like he would always do to me.

"Ha, very funny." The ice mage pushes my hand away and pouts. He's still taller than me, but it's clear that I'm a few years older. "I've been getting enough shit from Lyon you know."

"I just couldn't help myself." I wink, and suddenly I feel a pair of eyes watching me angrily. I glance over to see Juvia glaring daggers at me from behind a pillar and decide to move myself away from Gray. The last thing I needed was the water mage declaring me as one of her love rivals. I grab Bickslow, pulling him away as the two ice mages start arguing with each other.

"Hey so you remember that thing we used to do?" I ask quietly. When I was younger, Bickslow taught me all about weed and smoking. It was one of our favorite things to do when we hung out.

Bickslow grins "You bet your sweet ass I do."

"Well I could use some right about now, would you like to join me? It's been forever since I've had someone to smoke with!"

"Hell yes!" He stands up, and his babies move to his pockets as he limits their magic supply. They like to act crazy when he's high, so Bickslow prefers to put them away so they couldn't cause trouble.

We walk out back and sit on one of the wooden tables near the small training grounds. It's late afternoon and the sun is just barely beginning to set. As we smoke, I start reminiscing again. It felt as though seven years had flown by, but so much had changed since everyone left. Neither of us spoke for a while, content to sit and get high. Things were always so natural when I was with Bickslow. He even feels comfortable enough to take his visor off when we hang out alone like this. Smoking always helped relax him even further too. When he quickly slips the visor and hood off, I look over at him and grin. It felt good to see his face again. His blue mohawk stuck up all over his head and I laughed, reaching up to pat it down. The wild locks were so soft and I found myself sighing wistfully.

"It feels great to have you guys back." I say as I pull away.

"It feels great to be back." Bickslow responds, looking content "I can't imagine what it's been like for you with everyone gone for so long. For us, it just felt like we took a nap."

I frown, looking up at the stars "It was hard, but I knew you guys were still out there. I kept busy with training and whatnot."

"Yeah, I can tell. Your magic energy is super strong. You got sexy too." He says, waggling his eyebrows. I giggle and push his shoulder.

"When did you become such a tease?" I ask. The Bickslow I knew loved making perverted jokes, but never towards me. It was strange hearing these things directed at me. Normally, he and I would just flirt with the same people together, since both of us were bi.

Bickslow chuckles "I was always like this baby; you were just too young for my tastes back then."

"Oh, so that's what you look for in a partner? Close in age? Those are some low standards Bicks." I tease.

"You know you're getting totally wet for me, don't deny it."

His words make me gasp "You're terrible."

"You love it." Bickslow says, and suddenly he leans closer to me. I stop, watching as his deep red eyes glance down to my lips. There's lots of tension in the air as he moves closer, and I stay still, not sure if I wanted this to happen. Sure, the seith mage was hot. He was a great guy, funny, considerate, fucking built. But, he used to be my best friend. It was hard to see him in any other way. _Although, things have changed (Y/n)_ , I think, _You're not the same as you were then_. Besides, a simple kiss won't really change anything, right?

I decide to let it happen, and I close my eyes and move my lips to meet his. We kiss softly at first, but then Bickslow moves his lips and deepens the kiss. I sigh softly into his mouth and his hand cups my face. He slips his tongue into my mouth and I can't fight the moan that bubbles up in my throat. The seith mage tastes like spice and licorice, and it faintly reminds me of one of my favorite liquors. Our tongue wrestle back and forth and I lose my train of thought, focused entirely on kissing Bickslow. After a moment, he pulls back slowly. We look at each other, both trying to catch our breaths.

"So that was…" Bickslow grins widely. I nod.

"Yeah." I giggle, my cheeks red. "I always knew you'd be a good kisser."

"Why thanks!" He laughs, winking at me. "You weren't so bad yourself."

We're quickly back to our normal banter, and it's almost like the kiss hardly happened. Although, I can't help but run the moment over again in my mind. That had been one of the most amazing kisses I'd ever been a part of.

We continue talking as we finishing smoking. Our conversation starts light but soon gets to be more serious and I really want to ask the seith mage about Laxus. After finally work up the courage, I quickly blurted out my feelings. "I don't really understand how you guys could forgive Laxus so completely."

Gramps had said that he was still weary of the lighting dragon slayer, but it seemed everyone else was totally fine. I didn't get it. Bickslow glances at me, seeing the frustrated look on my face. He sighs "Don't forget, me Ever and Freed were all close to him before the whole attack on the guild happened. He was always really nice to us, unlike most of the guild. I think he just kind of lost himself back then. When he came back during the battle at Tenroujima, he proved to me that he was worthy of forgiveness. I imagine every one else feels the same. You couldn't imagine what it had been like for us there."

I ball up my hands, remembering everything they had told me about what happened. "Yeah, I guess..."

"Look, it's just gonna take you some time. A lot longer than it took us because of everything he did the last time you guys saw each other." Bickslow says softly. I didn't want to think about that, but I couldn't stop the images from flashing through my mind. Laxus, sneering at me as I begged him not to follow through with his plan. How he had slapped my hand away as I reached for him, the angry look in his eye as he told me I was just some annoying little kid. When I finally snapped and yelled at him, he had pushed me over and sent a lightning bolt down from above to keep me from getting up and following him. It had been a frightening experience, and I hated myself for being so fucking stupid. Laxus was just an arrogant jerk and I couldn't understand why I had cared so much for him.

"It hurts, seeing how nice everyone is being to him. I'm not ready to stop hating him but everyone has moved on. I almost wish I could too. Hell, it's been seven years that I've held onto this anger. What kind of Fairy Tail mage am I if I can't forgive him?" Tears are threatening to fall, and I tightly shut my eyes to stop them.

"You will in time (Y/n), don't worry. Nobody blames you for being upset. He did a lot of shitty things to you." He ruffles my hair and hugs me against his side. We sit like that for a while before I'm ready to head in. I feel a lot better after my heart to heart with the seith mage.

"I'm gonna go back inside, you coming?" I ask, standing up and brushing the dirt off my shorts.

Bickslow nods, slipping his visor back on his face. I gather up my stuff and we go back into the guild. The party is starting to wind down, and there are lots of drunk people passed out on benches everywhere. I smile as I look around. Just like the good old days (Minus the tiny guild hall, of course). Evergreen comes over to us looking excited as we make our way through the mess.

"Laxus invited us to stay at his house, Bicks." She says. "We all lost our apartments, but he has tons of spare bedrooms at his home. He even said he had some money and would get us dinner."

"That's awesome! I hadn't even thought about where we would go." Bickslow sighs. "Thank god." Suddenly, they both flinch, seeing the look on my face. "Sorry (Y/n)."

"No!" I sigh and shake my head, "Don't be! It's fine, I have no spare rooms anyway." Although I had planned on inviting them back to my house tonight so I could cook for them, but it would seem I was too late. _Damn you Laxus_. "Let me know if you guys need anything! Don't forget, I saved a small amount of everyone's stuff, and there should be enough clothes to last until we can get you guys back on track. There are not many missions, but I'm sure once word gets out about your return, we'll get more."

"Sounds good! We'll see you tomorrow morning at the guild!" Evergreen says cheerfully. "Goodnight (Y/n)."

"Bye guys." I smile, waving as her and Bickslow join Freed at the front doors. When they open I catch a glimpse of Laxus standing outside, who smiles as he's greeted with a bear hug from Bickslow. The door shuts and I sigh. Everyone seems to have gotten over what happened, but I couldn't bring myself to do the same. _It's just gonna take some time_ , I remind myself sadly.

I'm standing there staring at the doors for a few moments before I decide to head home as well. It wasn't too late, so I could at least make myself dinner before bed. Laxus and the Thunder Legion are luckily gone when I go outside, and instead of walking, I quickly teleport home.

I focus my magic into manifesting inside me, turning it to lightning and focus on the street I live at. There's a quick weightless feeling before I'm crashing down, a crash of thunder signaling my arrival. It was always loud when I teleported, so I avoided doing it late in the night or too early in the morning. All my neighbors knew me well though, and didn't mind very much. I walk slowly up to the black door of my home, unlocking it and kicking my shoes off as I walk in.

I shut the door behind me and walk into my living room to turn on some music. It always helped distract me from the loneliness I felt some days. After finding the right station, I go into my spacious kitchen and make myself a quick meal with the small amount of food I had in my cupboards. After eating, I take a long hot bath with some bubbles in it. The heat soothes my tense muscles and after a while of soaking I get out and start getting ready for bed. It's late before I finally collapse onto my sheets and snuggle under the covers. I lay there for a while, thinking about everything that had occurred.

This morning, I could never have imagined that the day would have ended like this. Despite all the drama with Laxus, I was incredibly happy to have my nakama back. I smile when I realize I get to see everyone again tomorrow. For the first time in seven years, I fall asleep quickly and have pleasant dreams.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Back with chapter two! Hope you all enjoy . I skipped the whole "Key to the Starry Sky" filler arc because I can't stand it, so this chapter will be quick and then we go right into the three month training!_

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 _In the night the stormy night, she'll close her eyes_

 _In the night the stormy night, away she'd fly_

* * *

The next day I wake up early, feeling refreshed, so I decide to go on a run. I doubted anyone would be at the guild already anyway (unless their drunk asses fell asleep there, of course), and since I skipped my workout yesterday and drank a lot too, I needed to make up for that today. There was no way to get stronger without lots of exercise. I also do meditation to help strengthen my magic container. It had become a routine for me, and it distracted me from all the hurt I felt over the years.

Jeez, just saying that is depressing. It was hard to believe all that was over now. I'd carried the grief for so long that it was like a huge weight had been lifted from my soul. It was gonna take getting used to.

 _Maybe now that Bickslow was back, I could get him to teach me more gymnastics,_ I thought to myself as I ran. The seith mage was always really flexible, and he had been helping me learn when I was a kid. I stopped when he disappeared, not knowing enough to keep doing it.

Looking back, I'm sure I could have found a way to learn more, but I didn't bother. It wasn't the same without him. However, I had continued practicing what Freed had taught me long ago and was now a very proficient rune mage. He had so many books on runes, as well as ones about magic itself. Among his numerous collection of books, he also kept a few that pertained to the types of magic used by his team mates. Through the seven years I'd managed to read every tome, and I really admired how much time and effort Freed must have spent on learning about everyone's strengths and weaknesses.

After finishing my workout routine, I go home and get cleaned. As I'm showering, I suddenly remember that the Grand Magic games would be starting in a few months. The games had started up a few years ago, and we'd never been able to do well. Despite my rigorous training, Fairy Tail always came nearly dead last. But now, with everyone back, there was a chance we could win this time. I decide to mention it to Gramps as soon as I get to the guild, so I hurry and get ready.

When I get to Fairy Tail, there are many members there and everyone seems to have settled down a bit from yesterday. Well, as settled down as this guild could get of course. Pretty much all our members are here after all, so it's bound to be a bit rowdy.

I wave to the members of Team Natsu (minus Erza) as I walk up the stone pathway, passing Max and a few other guys as they go up to the group. They're all teasing each other and I chuckle as I walk in. It seemed everyone was starting to get used to being back. I make my way through the doors and see Gramps standing at the bar calling for everyone's attention.

"Ah (Y/n), just in time! I have a very important announcement to make." He shouts. I walk in and stand next to Cana. This isn't at all what I expected to be happening when I got here. Gramps has a serious look on his face as he continues, "The time has come kids! For years, I've watched you all grow into strong, capable mages. I'm so grateful for getting to be a part of it, and I believe I have done all I can in service to this guild. Allow me to introduce the next master…"

I open my mouth in shock when Cana says "Wait, what? You're really stepping down?"

People begin to mutter. Makarov was getting old, and I'd heard about how difficult the fighting had been at Tenrou, so he was probably exhausted and ready to retire. Although, there was no telling who would be the next master. Macao had done a decent job while everyone was gone, but there was no way he'd choose him. So who could it be?

"Without further ado, the fifth master of Fairy Tail, Gildarts Clive." Gramps motions next to him, and we all look and see Mira standing there smiling. Everybody deadpans, including Makarov. He shouts, "Where the hell is Gildarts?"

"I'm not sure but he left this for you!" Mira laughs, and hands Makarov a note.

He reads it out loud. In it, Gildarts says that since he has the chance to be in charge there were two things he wanted to do. We all listen intently and I gasp when he says he will be reinstating Laxus as a member of Fairy Tail. Gramps sighs, muttering curses under his breath as everyone looks at the dragon slayer. He goes still in shock when he hears the announcement.

"No way." He gapes . The members of the Thunder Legion get excited and they all dog pile him.

"Welcome back boss man!" Bickslow says, and I roll my eyes when I see Freed start bawling. It feels good to see them all so happy though, and I smile sadly. _If they're happy, then I should try to be too._

Makarov continues reading the letter, "And two, I hereby appoint Makarov Dreyar as Fairy Tail's sixth master…" He drops the letter and cries "But I just retired!"

Everyone laughs and he finishes reading. Mira hands Cana an envelope when he's done, and everyone goes back to what they were doing, some choosing to stay and see what her letter said. We had all found out yesterday that she was his daughter, since he had bragged about it to anyone that would listen. I quickly walk away and go up to the bar where Gramps is fuming over a mug of ale. I decide maybe I should wait a bit before talking to him, so I order myself a drink instead.

The guild quiets down for awhile, and I sit at one of the tables and talk with Cana, Erza and Bisca as I sip on my drink. I wave in passing to the Thunder Legion, letting them have their time with Laxus as he gets his guild mark back. They have a little celebration for him and I can't help but laugh at their energy.

Max (looking rightfully beat up) and the other guys come back from outside after a little while. That was no surprise the two had ended up fighting, and Natsu had of course won, but apparently not without a bit of trouble. Apparently Natsu and the rest of his team were feeling dismayed about their lack of strength, and didn't return from the sparring area. It seemed they wanted to find a way boost their magic power. It surprised me to hear they were struggling, and I wondered how big of a gap that seven years had left.

The realization sparks a conversation between guild members, many of them having the same thought as me. All the other guilds were ahead of everyone by seven years. How could we make up for that? Would we be able to make it back to the top? Was joining the games again a bad idea? I found myself wanting to believe it wasn't. We could do it, and it seemed the only one of my group that agreed was Romeo. He was currently having a heated argument with his father about it.

"We can do it this year!" Romeo insists. "We have to join the games!"

"I said no, and that's final." The older man responds "We're never taking part in that ever again!"

"You're not the guild master anymore dad, you don't get to decide." Romeo shouts. The doors open as they're arguing and Natsu, Lucy, Gray and Wendy walk in. The father and son duo barely notice though, caught up in their argument.

"What's all this about?" Gray asks as he comes and stands next to me. His shirt is completely missing and he doesn't even realize it.

"They're talking about whether we should take part in the Grand Magic Games." I mutter, knowing it was about to get louder with Natsu here. I glance over at him and see he's taken his pants off as well and I chuckle "Uh, you could at least try to keep your pants on Gray..."

"We've got the Tenrou team with us now! Natsu-nii and Erza-nee are unstoppable." Romeo shouts, ignoring Team Natsu's entrance. "Not to mention, (Y/n)-nee is really strong too. If they all work together, there's no way they can lose!" I open my mouth in shock, surprised that Romeo felt strongly enough to suggest me being put on the team with the Tenrou mages.

"Everyone else has missed out on seven years of training though…" Warren mutters.

"What are you guys even talking about?" Natsu shouts.

I sigh, stepping in "The Grand Magic Games is a tournament that takes place in the capital. It's meant to determine the strongest guild in Fiore. Guilds from all over compete in a series of games and competitions. Despite my best efforts, we've come in almost dead last every year. Sabertooth always wins."

"I see." Erza says, crossing her arms and grinning, "So this Sabertooth guild is known as the number one guild then?"

"Yup!" Romeo says "But with you guys here, we can win and become number one again!"

Makarov puts his hand on his chin in thought "Hmm, I'm not entirely convinced we can."

I roll my eyes "The top prize is 30 million jewel Gramps."

His eyes light up instantly. I knew the cash prize would change his mind. "We're in!"

Everyone continues debating about whether it's a good idea or not, and I stand there smiling when Natsu starts jumping around, getting all fired up and shouting. Leave it to him to be excited about fighting people. However, his energy helps instill hope into everyone. Soon the whole guild is excitedly yelling and the group that I grew up with all these years is still looking concerned. I pat Romeo on the back as we smile at them.

"Don't worry guys; I'm sure we can do it." I tell them. "We'll all just have to train really hard for the next three months!"

Makarov gives a final speech, and we all start forming training teams. I stand off to the side, not really ever having teamed up before. Maybe I can group up with Cana or another solo mage? Gramps notices me standing alone and comes over to me. "(Y/n), I want you to make sure you train extra hard alright? I plan on putting you on a team for the tournament, so be prepared."

"Oh, okay! I just don't really know what to do. I guess I can continue training solo..." I ponder.

"No way!" Bickslow says suddenly as he and Evergreen come walking up to me "You're coming with us shorty!"

"Oh, uh-" I sweat-drop, not sure if I'm willing to go with them. I know Laxus will probably be there so I'm a little apprehensive.

"That's a great idea kids!" Gramps nudges me towards them, that sneaky bastard. "You can learn a lot from them (Y/n), it'll be good for all of you."

"I guess..." I'm pulled away by Ever and she hugs me excitedly.

"Can you believe Laxus is back in the guild?" She says "I hope you don't hate us for being excited. I know you're still mad and all."

I shake my head at her "I could never hate you guys. I'm just happy that you're happy. I've decided to move on. I won't let any of it bother me."

"I'm glad." The fairy mage hugs me "So, I was thinking we could all go out and celebrate you know? Since we'll be training together, it'll be good to spend some time with each other beforehand."

"Sounds good." I smile "Would you guys like to come to my house? I can show you the place and you guys can see all the stuff I've saved. Laxus can come too, if he wants…"

"Hope you got lots of food cuz we're hungry!" Bickslow says with his tongue out. His babies shout as they spin around me "Hungry, Hungry!"

"On second thought, maybe we should go somewhere else…" I laugh, backing away before the seith mage suddenly scoops me up over his shoulder. "Hey, put me down!"

"Nope, you're coming with me!" He starts walking towards Freed and Laxus, and all I can see is Evergreen following behind us laughing. Despite being carried around like a sack of potatoes, I felt lighthearted and practically giddy. I guess I could handle dealing with Laxus if it meant hanging out with these guys again.

"What on Earthland are you doing Bickslow?" Freed asks with a sigh.

"(Y/n) invited us over to her place." Bickslow responds "You're coming too Laxus."

I can't see the expression on the man's face, and soon Bickslow is walking out of the guild with everyone following behind us. I wave to Freed from my spot on Bickslow's shoulder "Sup?"

The rune mage rolls his eyes, trying to hide a grin. I look to Laxus and decide that since we'll be working together for a few months, I should try being nice. "So uh, congrats on getting accepted back into the guild."

"Thanks." He says looking slightly surprised. Then, he looks up at Bickslow and frowns. "Hey man, do you even know where you're going?"

The seith mage stops "Oh, ha-ha, no. I guess I should let (Y/n) lead the way."

He sets me down and I have to stay still for a moment to keep my balance. All the bouncing around on his shoulder left me momentarily dizzy. I stand up straight and punch Bickslow. He just cackles loudly and I start walking towards my house. Evergreen comes to walk beside me and we start talking. The guys walk behind us and I can hear small bits of their conversation.

"So you three are getting a long well with (Y/n)." Laxus says, looking sideways at Bickslow. "What's that about?"

The seith mage shrugs "After you left we kind of took her under our wing. We felt bad for the way we treated her and wanted to make it up to her. We all ended up becoming good friends. She and I really hit it off, but she was almost like a younger sister back then. But now? Damn, she's hot."

"That's quite inappropriate." Freed sighs.

"Eh, not really. I mean, she's older than you and Ever now. Things are different." Bickslow says. Before I hear more, I'm sucked back into the conversation I'm having with Evergreen. Eventually we make our way to my apartment and I unlock the door, holding it open for everyone.

"It's not much," I say as everyone walks in "But it was the best I could get on my earnings."

"Awh, this place is so nice." Evergreen smiles "It's really open and roomy."

"I see you've kept a lot of my books." Freed says as he and Laxus walk into my living room. On the far wall, the entire space is covered by bookshelves. The rest of the room is pretty plain, styled in a simplistic fashion with dark furniture.

"I tried to save as much as I could. I even used the rune spell you had placed over them to keep them in pristine condition! Same with the spare room." I say proudly.

Freed inspects the runes shielding the bookcases "Perfectly executed (Y/n). I'm impressed."

I flush under his praise "Thanks. I studied really hard."

"Man, with you on the Fairy Tail team there's no way we'll lose the games." Bickslow says around a mouthful of food as he returns from my kitchen with a sandwich.

I glare at him "Really, already eating my food? I was gonna offer to go get us something, but you just have no patience."

"How about I take everyone somewhere? My treat." Laxus says suddenly. "I had a lot of jewel saved up and besides, it's the least I could do since you saved these guys a lot of hassle by taking care of their stuff."

Everyone looks at me gratefully and I wave them off "It was nothing, really!"

"Join us sis." Evergreen hugs me around my waist tightly. "We won't take no for an answer."

"Fine, I guess." I sigh, caving under their stares.

The Thunder Legion cheers as I gaze at Laxus, who smiles gently at me. It was such a genuine look and I couldn't help but smile back at him. I continue showing everyone my house, and then we start going through everything in the spare room. We're all laughing and reminiscing for a while before we decide to go eat. I spend the rest of the day with them, having more fun than I have since they disappeared. Laxus and I don't talk much, still having a bit of tension between us, but we're both trying at the very least.

It's late afternoon when we decide to start moving all their stuff out onto a huge cart I rented. Laxus owned a five bedroom house that was fully furnished, and offered to let the Thunder Legion stay there until they could get back on their own. So, we were moving all their stuff to his place. Bickslow wraps the rope pulling the cart full of stuff around his babies to have them haul it all over to Laxus's. His home is on the east side of town in the forest, and was further from the guild. Luckily, it was still nearby my place so it didn't take us long to transport everything. What did take forever was moving all the items into everyone's room. The seith mage's totems were a huge help, transferring their souls to the large objects to help float them up the stairs. It's evening by the time we finish, and afterwards we all stand out in the front yard to enjoy the cool breeze.

"Thanks a lot for all your help today babies!" I say as I breathe in the night air "We couldn't have done it without all your hard work."

"Hard work, hard work!" They repeat cheerily.

"Hey" Bickslow whines "I'm the one using up all my magic to power them."

"Oh shut up you wuss." I laugh, sticking my tongue out at him. He growls with a smirk and goes to grab me. I dodge and start running around to avoid him, using my lightning to teleport away every time he gets close. Eventually the seith mage gives up on trying to catch me and stops, panting.

"Fuck, you're fast." He wheezes, his hands resting on his knees.

"Wow, I wasn't even trying! You guys really do have a lot to catch up on." I giggle, poking him in the side.

"Yeah, about that." Laxus says "I think we should probably start training as soon as possible. Where do you guys think we should go?"

"We could go up north. It's been awhile since I've practiced any snow storm magic. The harsh elements and mountains would make for good endurance training too." I suggest.

"That's a really good idea." Freed says.

"What? That sounds awful!" Evergreen whines. I can't help but laugh. She was always a pampered drama queen.

"There's a nice cabin resort and hot springs too you know. Plus, it's spring so there's only gonna be snow up higher on the mountain." I tell her. Her eyes light up when she hears me mention the hot springs and she grins.

"That works for me!" She says. We all look to Bickslow who gives us a thumbs up, agreeing to our plan.

"Alright, guess it's settled then. We'll meet at the train tomorrow, early." Laxus says sternly, staring at Evergreen.

"I need my beauty sleep! Alarms cause stress." She pouts. We all laugh at her solemn expression. The fairy mage was very serious about her sleep. She absolutely hated waking up early. However, big missions usually involved a lot of travel, so it was important to get started promptly. After a bit more talking with everyone, I decide it's probably time to head home.

"I'll let you guys get some rest. See ya tomorrow!" I say as I begin to walk away, but Laxus stops me.

"Hey, do you mind if I walk you home?" He asks quietly.

I stare at him doubtfully before I notice Evergreen giving me thumbs up from the patio. They all quickly go inside and I glare at the closed door. _Those jerks ditched me_. The atmosphere gets awkward, and I sigh. "I was just going to teleport... But I guess."

He scratches the back of his head "Right, I forgot you could do that."

I nod and begin walking, and he comes to move in step beside me. It was easy to deal with Laxus when the Thunder Legion was there, but on our own it was awkward. We walk in uncomfortable silence for a while before Laxus clears his throat. "So, uh, I know things are pretty tense between us, but I'm really glad you're giving me a chance."

I shrug. "It's really only because everyone else seems so happy to have you back. I don't want to ruin it for them." He looks away, disappointed by my explanation and my stomach drops. I was being rude, but I couldn't help it. To lessen the tension, I add "Although, I figured it's been seven years and now would be a good time to move on."

Laxus nods, "Either way, I appreciate it. You've become an amazing mage. I haven't seen you fight yet, but your magic power is strong."

"Yeah" I shrug, a bit uneasy with his praise "I've had a lot of time to train. Sometimes I do S-class missions with mages from other guilds."

"Well, if you're up for it, I'd like invite you out on a job with me and the Thunder Legion sometime."

"Really?" I ask, surprised. When I was a kid I had repeatedly asked to join Laxus on missions. He would simply blow me off, ignoring me or outright yelling at me.

"Yeah." He shrugs "I know I was always a total asshole to you, and after I left I thought really hard about why. I realized I was lashing out that way because I didn't want to admit that I enjoyed your presence. Not in any weird way obviously, just that… you were always so determined and headstrong. I could tell then, you'd be an amazing mage eventually. But you were still just a kid, and I was an egomaniac obsessed with power."

After he finishes, I'm silent for a while. I really had no idea how to respond to that. The mighty Laxus Dreyar was here pouring out his heart to me? I couldn't believe it. "Why are you telling me all this?"

"I guess because I really want you to see that I'm not the same guy I was then." He says. He looks completely uncomfortable, and for a moment I felt like maybe he was just doing this because Gramps or someone told him too. Was this just a pity apology?

I frown, growling "Why do you even care what I think? Just because I'm strong now, suddenly my opinion matters? Or is it just to make you feel better about yourself? I don't need you feeling sorry for me."

"That's not it at all!" Laxus scowls. We arrive at my front door and he stops and turns to me. Luckily, there's nobody outside witnessing our argument. "I'm doing this because I care about you (Y/n), you're important to me! You're a part of my guild, and I did a lot of bad things to you. I need to make it up to you, because I can't stand you hating me. You're an amazing person, and it kills me that I hurt you the way I did. I want to be someone who cherishes their nakama, who will do anything to help their friends... like you."

I stare wide eyed at the dragon slayer, my heart pounding. The look in his eyes was so intense and I could feel tears gather in my eyes. "Laxus…"

"Shit, (Y/n) I didn't mean to make you cry." He said. I shook my head and smiled softly at him.

"No, it's fine…" I wiped the tears away "I'm sorry. I was a jerk to you, and you were just trying to apologize."

"Don't be sorry, I deserved it." Laxus says softly. He pauses, watching me intently "So, what do you say? Will you give me a chance?"

I nod "Yeah, sure."

Laxus grins widely at me and my heart skips a beat. "Awesome. I'll see you tomorrow at the train station then?"

"Definitely. I can't wait to start training and sparing with you guys." I say cockily "I'm pretty sure I can beat Bickslow's ass!"

"I can't wait to see that." He laughs, and I wave at him as he walks away. "Later!"

I shut the door behind me as I walk into my house and sigh. Being near Laxus again brings back so many old memories and none of them that great. However, he was reaching out, trying his hardest to make sure I knew how he felt. The old Laxus would have never done that before. He's come such a long way from then. Laxus wanted to be strong now not for fame or glory, but to protect his friends, which is exactly how I've been trying to live my life since then. I could see in his eyes that he meant what he said, and it sent my heart racing to see the earnest expression on his face. _I've got it bad,_ I think bitterly. After seven years I thought I'd gotten over him but it seemed as though I had simply buried and ignored those feelings. Being near him had brought them back to the surface, but I also found myself feeling something for Bickslow too. I wasn't sure what to think of it, especially since we hadn't had another moment again since our first kiss. Training is gonna be rough, but I'm excited to see what the future holds for me.


	3. Chapter 3

_I've seen better days_

 _So unafraid in my youth_

 _I can't breathe, much less believe the truth_

* * *

The next day, I get to the train station and see that everyone is already here. There's even a few groups of other Fairy Tail mages here taking the first train out. I wave to Gajeel and Lily who are standing and talking to Laxus and Freed. The iron dragon slayer was one of my favorite members of the guild. We always had fun teasing each other when I was a kid.

"Hey shorty!" Gajeel grins as I walk up to them. His arms are crossed over his chest and he unfolds them to rest his elbow on my head. "Man, you may look older but you're still tiny."

"Tch, I'm not even that short anymore. You guys are just giants." I retort, pouting as I push his arm away.

"Mhm, sure." He snickers "So, you're teaming up with these misfits eh?"

"Who're you calling a misfit?" Laxus sneers and the petulant expression on his face makes me giggle. He sees my reaction and looks momentarily pleased, but the look goes away before I even realize it.

"Gi-hi, don't get yer panties all in a twist, Sparky!" Gajeel says, taunting the older slayer. Laxus simply glares and Gajeel ignores him, turning back to me and Freed. "So, where ya guys headed anyway?"

"Up north to a town called Honeywort." Freed responded, holding a map of Fiore in his hands. He opens it up and points out the location to Gajeel and Lily as he continues "The nearby mountain is the tallest in Fiore with constant snowfall at the top. It will be very useful for endurance training."

"It's gonna be awesome!" I say excitedly. I was looking forward to this trip more than ever. "Where are you two going?"

"I've got a pretty secret training location in the forest." Gajeel has a smug look on his face and I roll my eyes. "I usually prefer to train alone, but I'm glad Lily will be there to spar with!"

He fist bumps the Exceed and I grin,"Not to mention, he'll be there to help your sick ass off the train!"

Gajeel glares at me while Lily tries to hide his laughter. The dragon slayer growls "I don't need no help, I use sheer willpower."

"He tried to insist we walk, but the forest is so remote it's nearly impossible to get to without taking the train to the closest town. After that it's a week of walking." Lily sighed "So there's no way we're walking the entire way."

"Yeah, yeah..." Gajeel grumbled "But we're walking back!"

The Exceed simply rolled his eyes and I giggle at their bickering "Well, I hope you guys have fun! Can't wait to see you at the games!"

"Looking forward to it." He says, ruffling my hair. "We're gonna kick some ass."

I push his hand away and chuckle as I walk away to go buy myself a train ticket. My hair is a mess from the dragon slayer disheveling it and I fix it as I wait in line. When I finally get my ticket, I head back to where the rest of the Thunder Legion is sitting. I sit next to Evergreen who looks like she's about to doze off. Bickslow is already passed out on the bench next to her, his babies nestled in his lap. Neither of them were very good with mornings.

"You look tired! Had a long night out with some cutie?" I tease the fairy mage as I sit and she huffs.

" _No_! God, you're just as bad as Bickslow!" She pouts, crossing her arms and I can't help but giggle. She makes it so easy.

"Mhm, you're just upset cuz it's true." I respond, sighing as we wait for the train "Man, I'm so excited to start training!"

"I'm excited for the spa!" Evergreen says dreamily. "We can have a girl's night tonight before we start training and stuff. There's so much I need to catch up on!"

I smile at her "Sounds good to me."

The train comes into view then, and soon the roaring sound of the engine wakes Bickslow up. He grumbles as the conductor loudly blows the horn, further announcing his arrival. We all stand, grabbing our packs and grouping back with Freed and Laxus. Gajeel and Lily wave to us as they continue waiting for their own train, which would be going a different direction.

We board the train after the passengers get off, and grab a spacious compartment for ourselves. I sit next to Bickslow and Evergreen with Laxus and Freed sitting on the other side. Laxus leans against the window and puts on his sound pods. I can hear loud music coming from them as he closes his eyes and lays his head back. I chuckle when I immediately recognize the song he's listening to. Laxus and I had a similar taste in music, and I'd enjoyed classic rock long before joining Fairy Tail. When I had found out, it was something that I often used as a kid to get him to talk to me.

I internally groan when I think about the ways younger me had tried to get his attention, but I never changed myself at the very least.

Evergreen falls asleep as soon as we start moving, bundled up with a little red pillow resting behind her head. Bickslow and I play cards for a bit while Freed immerses himself in a book. Laxus spends the entire time with his eyes tightly shut, fighting his motion sickness. Thankfully, the trip goes by relatively quickly.

We get to the northernmost town after a five hour train ride. The town, Honeywort, was a busy trade city and was far enough away from the mountain that there was no snow at all during the off-season. The resort we're staying at is a few miles further north from Honeywort, at the base of the mountain. We walk for a while before we reach the mountain resort. There were small patches of snow and ice around but it wasn't too cold. I had put on my thickest coat when we got off the train and everybody else had as well. It was more than enough to keep me warm, and I almost considered taking it off. With all the stuff we had to lug with us, we didn't need jackets to stay warm.

"Finally!" Evergreen groans as the resort came into view. There was a large two story building with red walls and a white roof standing at the front. The sign over the entrance declared it as the "Snowberry Resort and Spa".

There was a structure behind the entrance that was built around the hot spring. It had many small rooms, and for longer stays you could get private cabins. We decide to rent out two separate cabins, thanks entirely to Laxus's large sum of jewels. He had been S-class for so long, and instead of using a bank, chose to save his earnings in a safe at the house he'd bought. I could only imagine the amount of jewel he had, considering he hardly ever spent money on superficial items.

As Laxus stood talking to the lady at reception, I found myself admiring how generous he was being. The Thunder Legion seemed extremely grateful, and truly I was too. I wondered how much he did things like this for his team. If this was the man he was away from the guild, it was no wondered these three respected him so much.

After finishing all the necessary paperwork, Laxus is handed two sets of keys. We leave the reception desk and he hands one set to Evergreen "Don't lose this, it's the key to you and (Y/n)'s cabin."

She nods, grinning excitedly at me when we begin walking towards the cabins. They were set along a pathway that had several other cabins placed periodically down the line. Since it was the off season, there was nobody here and we got the first ones. The two small structures are connected by a wooden deck, so we're still right next to each other. They both have only two rooms, so the guys do rock paper scissors to decide who gets the pull out couch in the living room.

"Awe man, I always lose." Bickslow groans as we stand on the deck outside our separate cabins. There's a small patio set in the middle, looking out into the woods behind us.

"Not our fault you suck at that game." Laxus grunts and we laugh while the seith mage pouts.

"(Y/n), can I sleep with you?" He asks, turning towards me and grinning lecherously. Evergreen hits him in the back of the head and I laugh as he rubs the spot and sulks. Evergreen had some power behind her smacks.

"You wish!" She yells. "There's no way I'm letting you set foot in our cabin."

"But I don't wanna sleep on a pull-out couch the whole time..." Bickslow grumbles.

"How about a compromise?" Freed sighs. "You sleep on the couch-bed the first half of training and I'll take it the rest of the time."

"What about Laxus?" Evergreen asks.

Freed looks at the lightning mage fondly. "I would never make Laxus-sama use the couch, especially since he was so generous as to pay for this trip!"

"Fine, I guess it's better than nothing..." Bickslow says, glancing at Laxus "Although I don't suppose you'd like me to cuddle up with you, eh Boss?"

"As if!" He growls, zapping the seith mage harshly in response. Bickslow yelps, jumping away from the jolts of lightning. I find myself smiling widely as I watch them all interacting with each other. This group of mages was definitely unique, and it was a lot of fun being around them. I was glad they were willing to invite me along with them.

We soon parted ways, all of us agreeing to meet outside afterwards so we could get some food and supplies. Evergreen and I explored the cozy building, picking a room and putting all our stuff away. I changed out of my comfy travelling clothes and put on jeans and black boots paired with a long sleeve shirt cut low on my chest, showing off my (f/c) guild mark on the left side. Evergreen came out of her room wearing a dress and leggings with a white coat and fuzzy boots.

"Let's hurry up and get this over with so I can relax!" She says as we link arms and walk outside. The guys are already standing there waiting for us.

"Damn Stormy! You look fine even all bundled up. Your ass is screaming in those jeans." Bickslow cackles as his babies excitedly shout "Ass, ass!"

I punch the seith mage "You're such a pervert."

"I mean he's not wrong." Evergreen winks at me and I raise my brows at her in surprise. Normally she's the one admonishing him for his jokes. She simply shrugged, giggling "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em."

I laugh loudly, leaning in to her as we all begin walking into town. We get a bunch of groceries and things to last us for a month, all of us having a good time exploring the town a bit while we do. Everyone's arms are full of bags by the time we're done and even Bickslow's babies are helping to carry stuff. It's late afternoon when we finally get back. Luckily, we didn't have to worry about gathering any firewood before dark since the rooms had lacrima powered fireplaces.

We bring everything into the boy's cabin, and quickly put it away. I decide to make a warm stew for dinner and leave out all the ingredients I need. The few times I'd gone on missions with the Thunder Legion, I was the one who would cook and so it felt natural to be doing it again. Those three were no good at cooking, so they didn't bother. They stayed out of the kitchen, and to my surprise Laxus stayed to help. He began silently chopping the vegetables while I browned the meat. I didn't need any more help after he finished preparing the ingredients, so he stood back and watched with the Thunder Legion as I continued.

"I didn't know you were good at cooking." Laxus says. "Usually I have to do everything."

"Eh, I'm alright." I shrug "Stew is pretty easy."

"Oh please" Evergreen said, looking at Laxus. "This girl made some amazing meals for us when we went on missions with her."

"Yes, I'm sure without her expertise we would have starved on the road." Freed smiles fondly at me.

I shake my head as I leave the stew to simmer and set a timer. "You guys are exaggerating."

"Eh, not really. We definitely would have starved, unless we got lucky and found a restaurant in the middle of the forest, but that seems _pretty_ unlikely. " Bickslow says from the giant plush chair he's lying in. We all leave the kitchen, sitting in the living room as we wait for the food to finish. I toss a pillow at Bickslow as I sit on the couch and it hits him in the face. He pouts, grabbing it and throwing it behind his head. He's taken most of his armor off and is in just a black shirt and pants with his hood and visor sitting on the table next to him. He settles deeper into the chair and sighs "Man this thing is comfy, I might just sleep here. Oh, and I hope you guys don't mind, I like to sleep in the nude!"

"You will definitely not be doing that." Freed says as we all deadpan.

"So didn't need that mental image before dinner." Evergreen whines, rubbing her eyes as though that will erase the thought of Bickslow sleeping naked.

 _Ah shit, now I'm thinking about him naked!_ I think, trying to fight the blush on my cheeks. Luckily everyone else is too busy cringing and they don't notice my reaction. I couldn't help it. Bickslow was an incredibly attractive man, one of the more toned men in the guild, and the thought of him naked was definitely pleasant. To me, at least. Not so much to the others.

The timer for the food goes off, and I praise the kitchen gods for the perfect timing. I quickly get up, heading to the kitchen and trying to get the thought of naked men from my mind. I taste test the soup and find that it's ready. I start serving it up and everybody joins me in the kitchen. We all sit at the island in the kitchen and talk while we eat. Freed pours wine for everyone, and we toast to the rigorous training ahead of us. They all compliment me heavily on my cooking, and I'm glad I could be helpful in some way. If I couldn't help Laxus pay for stuff, at least I could do this. I really didn't want to feel like I was just being a freeloader.

After dinner, me and Evergreen go back to our cabin and grab our bath supplies. The boys walk with us to the spa and we part ways inside. The hot springs were divided by gender with a bamboo wall and both had separate bath houses connected. It was decorated with Japanese influence, splashes of red and black dotting the mostly white interior. We undress in the bath house and store our clothes in little compartments, wrapping fluffy towels around ourselves as we walk to the hot spring. There's nobody here since it was off season and I'm glad we won't have to deal with anyone else.

"Man this is amazing." Evergreen says as she hangs up her towel and sinks into the water. "We've basically got this all to ourselves!"

I hang my towel next to hers and get in, sighing as the warm water soothes my muscles. "Yeah, I know. This will be even better after a long day of training."

"Ugh, don't remind me. I'm trying to relax." She groans, and then suddenly grins at me "So, I've missed out on seven years of your life. I need to hear all about it! Got a special someone you're dating?"

I laugh and think back to everything that happened while she was gone. Dating had never really been that interesting to me to be honest. Most of my time was spent on solo missions and training. I had a few people who I tried to date, but not seriously. Long term relationships were messy and difficult when you were a mage. I never found someone who was really worth it either. Instead of wasting my time, I would just find someone at one of the bars in the towns I traveled to and have some fun with them. I shrug as I respond, "Not really. I haven't taken the time to date anyone in a while."

"Really?" She asks, lowering her voice and whispering conspiratorially "So, are you still a virgin?"

"Not even close." I respond, chuckling. Evergreen was somewhat innocent, even at the age of 20. She tended to scare men away with her headstrong ways. If it wasn't that, it was her Stone Eyes. She'd also been raised to believe that sex was meant to be with someone you trusted, which was different to my casual approach on sex. As a result, Evergreen had barely ever had more than a few partners. "I actually lost it to a mage from Blue Pegasus not long after you guys disappeared. You know Eve right?" I know she's going to freak and it's funny to watch her expression when she realizes who I'm talking about.

"What? That little snow mage playboy who always calls everyone 'Big sis'? One of the Trimens?!" She shouts in disbelief, her voice getting progressively shriller.

"Sssshhh! Keep your voice down!" I warn. She nods her head, eyes wide and I continue. "He was always really nice to me, and he and his guild helped us out a lot when you guys were missing. Besides, I'm two years younger than him, so he never called me Big Sis."

"What happened? You guys aren't together anymore?" She asks, curious.

"No, that was a long time ago. We didn't have much in common and the sex was boring so I broke up with him. It was hardly a serious thing anyway, he was such a flirt. I haven't really dated anyone else, usually I just find someone I enjoy hanging out with, we fool around and then go our separate ways." I shrug. "It's just easier that way. Besides, nobody has really caught my interest lately."

"Yeah, I get that." Evergreen smiles, a dreamy expression on her face "I just recently found someone who caught my interest."

"Oh," I ask "Who?"

She peeks sideways at me, hiding her blush "Nobody important…"

"Oh whatever, apparently they are." I roll my eyes. She could be such a tsundere. "So have you made a move yet?"

She pouts. "If he was a real man, he'd make the first move!"

I laugh loudly at her word choice, instantly knowing who she must be talking about. "He's probably too dense to realize you like him."

"Yeah, probably." Evergreen giggles, and we sit for a while longer gossiping.

It's late night when we return to our cabin, and Evergreen goes to bed. I change into warm pajamas and throw on a light jacket to step outside for a little on the shared deck. The weather was beautiful and I enjoyed looking at the night sky with a joint to smoke. There's a nice little sitting area to hang out at and to my surprise, Laxus is out there smoking a cigar. He nods in greeting and I sit next to him. We don't say anything for a while until he offers me a drag.

"I thought you quit?" I ask, turning down his offer with a grimace. Cigars were nasty and synthetic, I was not a fan of them.

"Yeah me too... " He grunts, looking at the offending item "This shit just hits the spot when it's cold."

"I can think of something better to smoke." I chuckle. Bickslow and I weren't the only members of the guild who smoked weed. It was actually completely legal and many people enjoyed it. It was used primarily by mages, who found that it was also extremely useful for many different ailments in addition to its relaxing and uplifting effects.

"That'd be nice, but I'm fresh out of that right now." Laxus says as he stamps out the cigar into the ashtray on the table.

"Well lucky for you I brought plenty." I say, pulling out my stash container and grabbing one of my joints. "I always keep some ready."

"You're so much like Bickslow it's almost scary." Laxus says as I light it and take a drag.

"I'm prettier." I giggle and hand the joint to the lightning mage.

"I won't argue with that." He grins and I blush. We continue passing the joint back and forth until it's gone. "So, Gramps was telling me his plan for the games before we left. Seems like he's gonna have two teams compete."

I nod my head thoughtfully "That'll be good, I hadn't even thought about that being an option. The more members we enter the better our chance of winning."

"Yeah. There's gonna be Team A and Team B." Laxus continues "You'll be with me on the B Team. He hasn't really said who else would be with us though. Team A is basically Team Natsu. I'm not sure it's a good idea to do two teams, but he said the winning team gets to order the others around for a day. I can't wait to make Natsu my bitch."

"That's awesome." I laugh, noticing the eager glint in his eyes. "I'm so excited to be competing with everyone! I'm gonna kick some ass."

"Just you wait until our training begins." Laxus grins widely and I can't help but admire the determined look in his stormy blue eyes. "When we're done, we'll be five times stronger than anyone else."

"You might just be able to take out an entire team yourself." I tease. Although, knowing him and some of the other guilds, I wouldn't be surprised. Laxus grunts at me, and we sit in quiet for a while. For once, the quiet between us is not at all awkward, and I feel content. The wind starts to pick up after a bit and I shiver. The temperature had dropped considerably from earlier/

"You cold?" Laxus asks when he sees my shaking.

"Eh. I'm fine." I lie, not wanting to admit to any weakness to this weather "Gotta get used to it if we're gonna be out here for three months anyway."

He rolls his eyes, and stands to remove his large fur lined coat. Before I have the chance to react he covers me with it. My face is red, but I sink into the warmth. I could faintly smell cologne along with the overpowering scent of thunderstorms and oak that was Laxus. He sits back down, looking out towards the forest "No use getting sick at a time like this."

"Thanks." I smile gratefully. I hadn't wanted to leave, I was actually enjoying our time together. But with the wind picking up I wouldn't have lasted long. I notice Laxus is wearing just a plain long sleeved shirt and frown "Won't you be cold though?"

"Nah, I'm pretty impervious to the cold. Dragon slayer's have really strong defenses." He says, lifting up one arm and flexing until the shirt was pulled tight. He grins, "My muscles protect me from inclement weather."

I laugh loudly and roll my eyes "Okay, sure."

Despite his teasing, I can't help but glance over him. It was weird knowing that Laxus was still nearly the same age when he left. I was so much older now. Being with him like this made me realize all the feelings I thought I had gotten rid of for Laxus, had simply been buried beneath my anger. Now that we had reconciled, they were rising back to the surface and I didn't know what to think. I was hyper aware of every little action he made, every slight change in his expression. He seemed so closed down and serious, but that wasn't completely true.

I decide to change the subject to save myself the embarrassment of ogling the man. Regretfully tearing my eyes from his built form, I ask "So, I've heard all about what happened on Tenrou from everyone else. How did you end up there though?"

"That's a long story…" Laxus begins, and he goes on to tell me everything that happened while he was exiled and how he came to Tenrou during the fight against Grimoire Heart. We talk for a long time before both of us realize how late it is. I don't mind though, it was nice to finally have the complete story of the past. I was ready to move on and look to the future.

"I guess we should probably head to bed." I say after a long silence. I stand up with Laxus's coat draped over my shoulders and stretch. As I gather up my belongings off the table I see that Laxus is still sitting there, staring at me. "What?"

He smiles softly, and the look is unlike any I've seen on him before. He tugs on the sleeve of his coat. "You look good in that."

I blush fiercely, trying to ignore the stupid fluttering in my stomach. "Thanks for letting me borrow it." I mutter as I begin to take it off, but Laxus stands up and holds it closed. Before I can ask, he pulls on the fabric and I'm pushed up against him. "Laxus…?"

"I really am a selfish bastard..." He mumbles. I look up at him and his face is closer to mine than before. He kisses me suddenly, gripping the coat tightly. I can't move, but I don't really care to anyway. I close my eyes and kiss him back.

How often had I fantasized about this when I was young? Too much, that's for sure. After the Battle of Fairy Tail, I'd never believed this would happen. I'd given up on my childish fantasies and moved on. I still felt something for Laxus, but it was different now, more subdued and mature. Them disappearing for seven years and giving me the chance to develop fully before they returned felt almost like fate. Who could have known that something so crazy would happen that would give me a chance to be doing this with Laxus?

At the same time, I can't help but think about my kiss with Bickslow. This one with Laxus was totally different, more of a hesitant step forward than a passion-fueled venture. However, they both left my heart pounding. My stomach was full of butterflies as Laxus gently pulled back, looking down at me intently. We're quiet for a moment, and I can't even think of what to say before he bites his cheek and turns away.

"Keep the coat; I'll just get it from you tomorrow."

He quickly goes inside, leaving me standing in the cold, dazed and feeling lost. "Laxus…"

* * *

 _A/N: Woo cliffhangers! Don't hate me._

 _Okay, so I wanted to take a moment further explain how weed works here. I've imagined it basically being like alcohol or cigarettes in this world. Free to be used within reason, and commonly sold and bought in certain places. Reader prefers to use it in its natural state, but sometimes buys it in premade packs. It also is used in potion making and healing. Hope nobody really minds!_

 _Anyway, leave a review and let me know if you're enjoying the story! I love getting feedback :)_


	4. Chapter 4

_I watched a change in you_

 _It's like you never had wings_

 _Now you feel so alive_

 _I have watched you change_

* * *

It's early in the morning on our first official training day, and I'm in my cabin alone with Evergreen. We're both standing in my room, basically whisper-shouting so a certain dragon slayer couldn't overhear us.

"He gave you his coat?!" She gapes at me "He never lets girls keep it! Ever!"

I bite my lip, looking at the article of clothing. It's lying out on my bed and we're acting as though it may get up and move at any second. Though I'd never admit it, I had actually slept with it all night. Laxus's strong masculine scent clung to the fabric and it made me feel secure, lulling me into a deep sleep filled with dreams of pleasant lightning storms. I thought over what Evergreen said, questioning why he had let me keep it overnight if he was so attached to the fur-lined coat. I didn't want to get my hopes up that it could actually mean something. _Then again,_ _he also kissed me…_ I sighed, shaking my head to clear my thoughts.

"I dunno… I mean, he knows me better than the random women he usually sleeps with, and can easily get it back whenever since I'm right next door. It's not that big of a deal."

"Your face says otherwise!" She says, pointing at me accusingly.

"Ugh, I know…" I can feel the light blush on my cheeks and I sigh, flopping back on my bed. I cover my eyes with my arm as Evergreen sits beside me.

"So, what happened?" She asks. I peek out from under my arm and see her prying eyes staring down at me. There was no way she was going to leave me alone when she knew I was hiding something, so I told her.

"We… We kissed."

"What?!" She screeches. I sit up, quickly clamping my hand over her mouth to quiet her shrieking.

"Keep your voice down!" I remind her, and I let go when she nods, eyes wide. She's trying hard to stay quiet but I can see a thousand questions running through her head. "Okay, yeah. He kissed me. It was… wow… Sudden, that's for sure. We stayed up late just talking and I really enjoyed myself. It started getting cold, so he lent me his coat. When I got up to leave, he had this look in his eyes… He told me I looked good in his coat, and before I knew it he was pulling me in for a kiss."

Evergreen smiles excitedly, clasping her hands together and pressing them against her chest. "Awh, (Y/n)! That's so romantic!"

"Oh whatever." I roll my eyes at her dreamy expression. No doubt she was imagining what our wedding would look like. "I kissed Bickslow too, it's not that big of a deal..."

She gets a disgusted look on her face and frowns "No way!"

"Yup" I grin, teasing. "It was pretty hot."

"Oh my god I just want to smack you right now." Evergreen shudders as she stands and swiftly walks out of the room. I chuckle, following her to the kitchen where she starts to make us some tea. It was early in the morning and she needed her caffeine, especially after hearing the latest developments in my life. She makes me a cup and hands it over the counter, and pours herself some. "Okay, so when did you and Bickslow kiss?"

"That day when I came to the guild after you all returned, when we went outside to smoke." I respond as I take a drink of the warm liquid. "We were talking, and he started flirting with me. I was really surprised when I found myself reacting to it. There was something between us that was new, and we both just kind of went for the kiss. It was… intense."

"Wow, and here I thought he was just joking around when he was flirting with you." She frowns, sighing dramatically as she leans against the counter. "I still see you as my little sister and here you're all grown up, kissing boys!"

"Well, technically I'm older than you but yeah. It was kind of weird suddenly having Bickslow's attentions focused on me. I'm used to being like his little wing-girl." I laugh, smiling fondly as I think about all the antics we used to get into. "Now, I think I'm starting to like him."

"And? What about Laxus?" She asks cautiously. "I know there was still a bit of tension between you guys, is everything resolved?"

I took a moment to respond, thinking hard about the lightning mage. "Yeah. He's changed, I can see that. He seemed really genuine when we talked and we were finally able to clear the air completely. I thought I was over him, but after last night…"

I trailed off, not sure what to say. When I thought about both men, I found myself comparing their kisses. Bickslow had thin lips and a wicked tongue, and his kiss had overwhelmed and excited me instantly. Laxus had full, soft lips and he had kissed me so gently that it was surprising. It sent my heart soaring. I couldn't stop the sigh as I remembered the two totally different experiences. Both were equally consuming my thoughts, however.

 _Fuck, this isn't good._ I realized that trying to do anything about this right now would be bad for our dynamic. For the next three months I'd be around these guys every day. There was no way I could continue anything. I needed to train hard so that we could win the games! I couldn't afford any distractions.

"Wow, you're really in a tough situation." Evergreen giggles, seeing my serious expression as my thoughts consume me. "But I'm glad you and Laxus are good now."

I nod, smiling softly. "Me too. And I think I'm just gonna ignore all these awkward feelings and focus on training anyway," I say, determined. "The last thing I need is emotions getting in the way of us winning!"

Evergreen smiles sadly at me "You really have grown so much. But don't let your determination to win get in the way of your chance at happiness. After all this time, you really deserve it."

"Thanks Ever." I say, taking her advice to heart. However, right now my happiness depended on the results of the games. We hug, and after finishing our tea the two of us start getting ready for a long day.

We head over to the boy's cabin for breakfast after we finish getting ready. She walks in, and I quickly hang up Laxus's coat on the rack by the door as I follow behind her. Freed is already up and moving about in his room, and Evergreen goes to loudly wake up Bickslow who is passed out on the couch. I go to the kitchen and start making breakfast as Evergreen wakes Laxus up as well. Soon everyone is in the kitchen, sitting on the bar stools around the center counter. They start discussing the next three months and setting up a training regimen as I cook.

"I think we need to focus on strength." Laxus said. Bickslow, sitting shirtless next to Laxus in his pajama pants and visor, nodded fervently in agreement while his babies repeated "Strength, strength!"

"Of course you guys would think that." Evergreen rolls her eyes "We need to work more on expanding our magic power. What do you think Freed?"

The rune mage looks over to Laxus, smiling "I'm willing to do whatever Laxus-sama wants!"

Evergreen groans in frustration "I should have known you would say that… (Y/n), help me out!"

I giggle as I finish up my cooking and start laying out plates. She's going to hate my response "I just want to fight someone first."

They all laugh when Evergreen lays her head down in defeat.

"How about this?" I offer as I dish up the food for everyone. "I do my sparring with someone really quickly before starting actual training today. Then, we set up a schedule. We could do alternating days where we do different things. One day we train solo, other days we get together and all do the same thing. Today we can start off solo and tomorrow we can do something as a group. Then, one day of relaxing every week. "

"Sounds like a great plan (Y/n)." Freed says, and everyone nods in agreement.

We all grow quiet as we eat, with the occasional teasing comments between Bickslow and Evergreen. He never missed a chance to give the fairy mage a hard time.

We finish eating and Laxus and Bickslow go to the rooms to start getting ready. Bickslow's stuff had been put in Freed's room instead of leaving it lying around. They had just enough space in the closest and dresser to share, since most of Freed's stuff were books that had been placed on the bookshelf in the living room. The rune mage starts doing the dishes with Evergreen and I sit there with my head resting on my hand, watching them.

I start thinking about how I was going to spend my day. I can't decide who I want to fight first. Evergreen was obviously out, she refused to participate. I didn't really want to spar with Laxus, knowing he'd probably beat me if I did. Sure, I was strong, but I wasn't a beast like the lightning dragon slayer. Although I am pretty impervious to his lightning, he would definitely defeat me just with brute strength. _Of course, there's the whole kiss thing too. That kind of makes things awkward._

I debate on asking Freed first. He was an amazing and clever mage and I would love to test my mind against his. Bickslow, on the other hand, I could use more of my magic with.I'm still struggling to decide when Laxus comes out of his room and sits next to me. He's wearing a tight-fitting black sweatshirt and loose sweatpants. I can tell he's using today to work on cardio and probably lifting too.

"What's got you looking so serious?" He asks, shoving his hands in his pockets and leaning back against the counter.

"I'm trying to decide who I want to fight first." I respond, glancing at him briefly.

He grunts "Of course you are."

Bickslow strides into the room wearing his full set of armor and fur lined cape, having heard our exchange. "I call first!"

"Guess that solves that." I chuckle. Freed and Evergreen finish the dishes and I stand up. "We ready to get started then?"

They all agree, and we walk to the front door. Laxus notices his coat already hanging up and he frowns, but doesn't say anything. I ignore his gaze, deciding it was better off if neither of us talked about what happened.

"So Ever, you gonna at least watch your 'little sister' fight?" I smile hopefully at her as we walk outside.

There was a vast open area away from the mountain and resort where there was no snow. It would be easier to go all out there without worrying about causing an avalanche or destroying any property. We walk down the steps of the front porch and take the path that leads down to the field.

"Sure, I wouldn't want to miss out on Bicks getting beat up." She laughs, dodging the seith mage when he tried to pinch her. They stick their tongues out at each other and I move ahead of them, walking next to Freed. They start hurling insults back and forth for a while. It finally gets quiet for a second before Evergreen shouts up at me. "Bickslow is checking out your ass (Y/n)!"

I roll my eyes and Laxus turns his head back to give them a dirty look "Do you two ever stop?"

Bickslow rests his hands behind his head, grinning mischievously "Don't act like you haven't been checking her out too boss man."

I face palm as Laxus zaps the perverted mage hard. He deserved every shock of lightning given to him. Laxus then continues walking ahead of our group, scowling with his arms crossed over his chest. I stare at his back, my cheeks turning red at the thought of him watching me in that way. _Damn you Bickslow, why would you say that?_ Now I couldn't stop thinking about him and last night. I really needed to stop.

We reach the field and I clear my mind of anything except my fight with Bickslow. I run a thousand different strategies through my head, picturing different ways of counteracting his magic.

"I just want you to know, I ain't gonna go easy on ya!" Bickslow cackles as we face off.

The other mages stand off to the side as we prepare. I grin widely "Good, cuz I'm not going easy on you either."

We stand still for a moment before I let out a deep breath, and as soon as I see Bickslow tense up I move. I knew the seith mage was not as good at close range fighting, so I quickly teleport directly behind him. I go to strike out at him using the lightning from my teleportation, and he swiftly turns and jumps back, his babies following.

"Oh-ho-ho! You sure are fast!" He laughs "I won't let you get that close again!"

His babies start shooting beams of green light at me and I dodge, running around the open field. Explosions sound behind me, and for a moment they stop as I make my way back around. I take the chance to attack, sliding to a stop and holding my hands out. I summon my magic, shouting "Storm magic-Tornado!"

Clouds form above Bickslow's head, and the wind picks up speed as a tornado quickly touches ground and throws the seith mage across the field. I direct its path towards him as he goes flying back and his babies quickly move to cover him. They block the tornado and he lands on his feet, sliding as the wind dies down. He stands again and his babies get into a vertical line in front of him. His face is a bit more serious than before as he shouts "Line Formation!"

A huge beam of light shoots out, and I move to the side, using a strong wind to turn his attack back around and directing it at him. He narrowly avoids it and I attack. "Storm Magic-Earthquake!"

The ground starts moving violently under Bickslow's feet, and he does a flip into the air. His babies catch him and they soar high overhead. I continue attacking as they do. Large bursts of rock start shooting up at them and they fly wildly to avoid them. He cackles loudly from above me and I glare. "Get your ass down here Bickslow!"

"Try and make me, baby!" He shouts, jumping off his babies and onto a barren tree.

I glare at him as I think of what to do next. I needed to get him down on the ground. As long as he's up there he's got the upper hand. I stand there trying to catch my breath, but his babies begin attacking again. I don't want to use too much of my magic up with teleporting so I run and dodge, using my wind to stop any attacks that get too close. _Dammit, this is annoying! I need to finish this soon._

"Storm Magic-Sandstorm!" I use the burst of sand to block his totem's attacks, but it does nothing against Bickslow. His visor does a good job of keeping the sand from his eyes and I curse when I realize that it was a poorly constructed assault.

"C'mon stormy!" Bickslow teases as my attack dissipates "I can tell you're getting worn out. Just give up!"

I growl "Fat chance! I'm taking you down."

"Alright, you asked for it! Baryon Formation!" His babies start spinning rapidly, glowing a bright green. A massive beam, bigger than all the others combined, forms from his totems and comes barreling towards me. It was an all or nothing kind of attack, and left him completely open from behind.

 _Now's my chance!_

I focus on a spot behind Bickslow while he's distracted, and use the blinding light from his attack to my advantage. The beam gets close to me, and I teleport at the last second directly behind the seith mage. He looks behind him in shock and I grin. "Gotcha!"

I summon a powerful snow storm, knocking him off the tree and across the field. He falls to the ground hard, and I drop down gracefully into the snow.

"Shit, that hurt. I'm out!" Bickslow groans, laying his head back. His babies fall to the ground around him.

"Wow, you're better than I thought you'd be!" I giggle as I walk over to him. The other three come running up to us and I look around. There are broken trees and debris everywhere. "Damn, we did a lot of damage."

"Yeah, there were a few times I was afraid we'd get sucked in! Thank god Freed put up some containment runes." Evergreen laughs, "You are amazing Sis!"

"Yes, extremely well done (Y/n)." Freed says "I look forward to our match together."

"Let's save it for another day, I'm kind of beat." I sigh, sitting next to the seith mage who is still lying on the ground. He grunts as I lay against him, my back resting on his side. All his heavy padding is like a nice pillow.

"Shit (Y/n), you kicked my ass!" Bickslow groans, turning his head slowly to look up at Laxus "I'm gonna need the rest of the day off Boss."

"Yeah I bet you are." Laxus chuckles, kicking the seith mage's foot. He then looks to me and nods "Awesome fight (Y/n). Before our training is over, you might be able to beat me."

"You think so?" I ask disbelievingly.

"Hell yeah." He says "You're pretty impervious to my lightning, and you're quick enough that you might be able to keep up with me. It would be an interesting match."

I roll my eyes at the glint in his eyes "I still think I'm gonna pass. I don't want to die."

"You two ready to get up yet?" Evergreen asks after a quiet pause.

"Give us a minute will ya?" I sigh "You guys can go on ahead without us."

They nod, and begin walking back towards our cabins. I lay my head back on Bickslow's chest, closing my eyes. I can feel his slow breathing and it's oddly soothing. Just being here with him calmed me down and I had to fight to keep from nodding off. We're both quiet for a while before the seith mage groans again.

"I was nearly out of magic power before you beat me" Bickslow says, pouting. "That Baryon Formation was my last shot."

"Awh, don't be upset. I have had seven years to get this strong you know."

He sighs, "You know what would really make me feel better?"

"What's that?" I look over at him and he quickly shifts over me, pinning me beneath him.

"A kiss." He grins. I bite my lip, considering his request. However, I think about what I said to Evergreen. Both he and Laxus were amazing, but I didn't want to do anything until we won. Trying to figure out my feelings for the two mages would cloud my mind. The Grand Magic Games were too important to go into them with an unclear head.

"How about no?" I respond, pushing the seith mage off me and standing up. He leans back on his hands and pouts.

"Awh, c'mon (Y/n). Suddenly you don't wanna kiss me?" He smirks "You sure were eager the other night."

I roll my eyes "Hardly. Besides, someone could see us."

Bickslow frowns "Why do you care? Do you not want to be seen kissing me?"

"It's not like that Bicks!" I wave my hands in front of me. Despite his cocky attitude, the seith mage had lots of self-doubt caused by the way past lovers had treated him. "Look, I really enjoyed our kiss. And I wouldn't mind doing it again, it's just…"

"You don't want anybody finding out?" He grunts, standing up and crossing his arms "I get it."

"No!" I sigh "I just want to keep a clear head these next few months. I need to focus on winning the games. You're just too distracting."

He chuckles, looking at me intently as if he was trying to figure out whether I was being truthful. After a moment, he sighs and drops his arms "Fine, but when Fairy Tail wins, I'm taking you out."

"We'll see." I blush, turning away to hide my smile. So much for keeping a clear head. I turn towards the direction we came from and start walking back, and Bickslow follows behind me.

"You have some leaves in your hair." He chuckles, pulling them out.

"Yeah pretty sure there's dirt all over my ass too." I laugh, brushing off my backside. We walk up the path, laughing and talking like normal as we go. I was glad to have settled things with Bickslow. But the closer we got to camp, the more I started thinking about Laxus.

I wasn't sure whether to ignore what happened or tell him how I felt. Everything with Bickslow was so easy, but the dragon slayer was a wild card. I didn't know him as well. Then, I also had to worry about telling the seith mage what happened with Laxus. I groaned inwardly, not looking forward to that conversation.

Before I realize it, we were back at the cabins. I decide to go into the cabin I'm staying in to see if Evergreen is still there and wave to Bickslow as we part ways. Evergreen is walking out of her room when I get inside and invites me to go meditate and do yoga with her. I agree, and she waits for me to change before we leave. She peeks her head into the other cabin to let the guys know, and I see that Freed has multiple books laid out in front of him. Bickslow is sleeping on the couch and Laxus is gone, having already left to start his own training.

We head up the mountain to find a place along the path where we could do our yoga. Both of us agreed we should do it in the cold to strengthen our resilience. Evergreen took some convincing, but she understood that it was time to get to work on training, and we weren't going to take it easy forever.

We walk up the mountain for a few miles and along the way, Laxus passes us as he runs down. He has his sound pods on and simply nods in greeting as he continues on. I notice the way he avoids looking at me and realize he's probably decided that it was better if we ignored what happened. I turn away and continue walking, strengthening my resolve. If that was what he wanted then that worked for me. Now I could focus on one thing-training.

"So…" Evergreen begins when he's out of earshot. He may have his sound pods on, but you never knew just how sensitive a dragon slayer's hearing was. "Have you two talked about last night? I saw you snuck his coat back without saying anything."

I sigh at her prying. I loved her, but the woman was relentless. It was only a matter of time before she said something, and of course she took the first opportunity to bring it up. I didn't want to think about it anymore, but she, apparently, had other ideas.

"I've decided it's best to ignore what happened and move on. Both with Laxus and Bickslow…" I say as we come to a stop near a vast open ledge clear of any trees.

She faces me, frowning "If that's what you want, I guess there's not much I can do to change your mind... You told Bickslow? I imagine that's what you were doing when we left."

"Yeah, we talked." I shrug "I told him honestly that I wanted to wait before deciding to pursue anything with him."

"And?" She asks.

"He said that he wants to take me on a date after Fairy Tail wins." I can't contain my grin despite my feigned indifference.

Evergreen shudders and I laughed, quickly summoning some wind to brush all the snow off the ground. We started to stretch and do our yoga, talking aimlessly for a while before moving apart to do our own thing. The rest of the day was spent that way, with both of us on different sides of the clearing. She works on strengthening her fairy flight and accuracy with her attacks.

I focus on expanding my magic container after an hour of simple meditation. I started by summoning lesser storms around me. My magic power manifested in a strong wind that I worked hard to enclose in a small area while I created multiple different storms at once. I used containment runes to protect anything around me from becoming damaged. Freed's books had really come in handy when I was younger. I poured over those tomes often, and along with everything he had taught me, learned rune magic well. Of course, mine was nowhere near his level. Still, the runes I created did the job.

I continued casting my magic, trying to keep it up for as long as possible. Finally, I ceased everything at once and sighed. That had been so incredibly strenuous, and I couldn't believe how long I'd held it for. Sweat was dripping down my face, and the cold mountain air cooled it down quickly. I panted, falling backwards and grinning. "I think that's a new record!"

* * *

 _A/N: So this was my first time writing a fight, hope it wasn't terrible! I find it difficult to do, and really hate long fight scenes, so it's pretty short. Anyway, leave a review and let me know what you think! See you next chapter :)_


	5. Chapter 5

_Trust I seek and I find in you_

 _Every day for us something new_

 _Open mind for a different view_

 _And nothing else matters_

* * *

The next few weeks continue on with all of us totally focused on training. Freed and I decide to spar the sixth day, with me resulting as the victor. It was a close battle, and there were a few times I was worried I'd lose. The rune mage did not hold back, and he was so clever. I ended up having to use brute strength to overpower him after a long fight. He was not the best in that area, and that was both something we realized we needed to work on. There were going to be times when just magic power and wit would not be enough, so I began more strength training. The look on everyone's face when they saw me dragging boulders up the mountain had been priceless, that's for sure.

Just in the short amount of time since we'd started, my magic and strength had improved greatly. After a full month, I managed to tap into my second origin. It was an incredible feeling, but I had to continue to train my body heavily afterwards to withstand the sudden jump in magic power I possessed.

Evergreen and I spend almost every night in the hot springs relaxing and talking. The rigorous exercise had everyone feeling sore. It was nice having the hot waters full of minerals to help refresh us. Not to mention, having the girl who was like my sister back was something I wanted to take full advantage of.

I try my best to avoid being alone with Laxus and he seems to have the same mindset as me. We both work hard to get stronger and talk very little. Neither of us mentions that first night and our kiss. It was hard, being near him and ignoring everything I felt. Nevertheless, it was necessary. Bickslow and I get along as well as we always do, and on team training days I spend a lot of time working on my agility and acrobatics with him. He doesn't flirt with me as much and I'm grateful he's being considerate of my feelings.

It's a rest day, and Evergreen and I have decided to go into town. We've been here well over a month now and have yet to really spend any time in town, besides our trips to get the basic essentials. We check out all the little shops and spend majority of the morning walking around. This town was not the biggest I'd ever been to, that's for sure, but it's cute. There's a lot of little touristic stalls in the center of town that had beautiful art and clothing items for sale. Neither of us had much money, however. Evergreen was pouting about all the clothes and trinkets she couldn't buy.

"Ugh, this shawl is gorgeous!" She groans for the 100th freaking time as she peruses a clothing stall. I resist the urge to roll my eyes and sigh.

"Maybe we can find some local residents that need some help and earn a bit of jewel." I suggest "We can check out the bars; they usually have lots of info on what's happening in the area."

"That's a good idea!" Evergreen says "We'll be here for a little while longer so it would be nice to have money."

"Yeah, and I'm really tired of hearing you complain." I mutter quietly as we start walking.

We decide to tell the guys about my idea to see if they'd like to join. Evergreen pulls a small communication lacrima from her purse and calls the lacrima at the boy's cabin. Freed answers, and agrees that it's a great idea. He tells the other two men and they decide join us as well. Evergreen and I wait around for about twenty minutes before they finally meet up with us in the town center.

It takes us a bit to decide on which places to check. Freed suggests we split up to visit multiples bars, since it would take a long time to check them all one by one. Not to mention, most of them were not guaranteed to have any available jobs.

"How about Laxus and (Y/n) take the west side and the three of us go east," Evergreen says suddenly, smiling mischievously "And then we meet in the middle!"

"Awh, but I wanna go with (Y/n)." Bickslow pouts, and the fairy mage grabs his arm.

"Nope, you're coming with us." She starts pulling him away, waving at me and Laxus "See ya!"

I glare daggers at her back as she drags the seith mage away, Freed following them reluctantly. Evergreen had been trying to convince me to talk to Laxus ever since I told her about our kiss. Of course she'd jump on any chance she could to get us alone. "That little…"

Laxus clears his throat and I turn to face him. He's looking at me expectantly and I sigh and walk past him, heading to the west end of town. It's quiet for a while, neither of us talking. I hope we find a job opportunity quickly. We get to the first tavern and walk inside. It's still early in the day so there aren't many people. I go straight up to the bar and order myself a drink.

"Aren't we supposed to be finding work?" Laxus teases as he sits beside me. The bartender fills a glass with dark liquid and slides it across the counter at me. I throw down some jewels and grab the glass. The bartender looks expectantly at the lightning mage and he pulls some money from his pocket. "Can I get a whiskey?"

I glance sideways at him as I take a sip of my drink "I won't tell if you don't."

"Agreed. So, what's got you so worked up? Is having to be around me that bad?"

I know he's joking, but I can't help feeling bad. We were getting along really well before the kiss and the awkwardness that ensued. It was all my fault for trying to ignore it. "No, just needed something to take the edge off. Evergreen is like an annoying older sister, always meddling in my business."

"I'm guessing you told her what happened?" He asks casually, swirling his glass and then downing half of it.

"Yeah..." I sigh "Listen, I want to talk to you about, you know, that night and the whole, uh..."

"The kiss?" He asks, his face completely blank. I mentally facepalm at my awkwardness. He looked completely calm while I was sitting here with my heart racing.

"Yeah, that. Look, I know I've been avoiding you ever since. But it's just because…" I stop for a moment, trying to find the right words. I decide to simply speak from the heart and tell him. "For seven years, I faced so many hardships and losses. All that time, I felt that it was up to me to help the guild keep going. I was hurt so deeply, but I knew you guys would come back. I wanted everyone to return to a guild they could be proud of...

" _That_ obviously didn't turn out well, and losing year after year was awful. The Grand Magic Games are so important to me, and we finally have the chance to win after so many humiliating losses. I don't want anything to get in the way of Fairy Tail winning. Acting on any kinds of feelings I have towards anyone would just distract me from that goal... I really like you Laxus."

I sigh, bracing myself for the most difficult part "I like someone else too though… And I've already told them the same thing I'm telling you. I don't want anything clouding my mind right now. I need to focus on getting strong and winning so that we can be number one again."

I finish my speech, and find that my glass is empty. It's quiet, and I glance over to see Laxus staring intently at his drink. I bite my lip worryingly "I'm sorry I wasn't honest from the start. I avoided you, hoping we could just forget it. _Someone_ decided that wasn't the right decision, so here we are."

"You really are something (Y/n)." Laxus mumbles and I look at him questioningly "I just kinda figured that you didn't have feelings for me and that's why you didn't say anything. After what I did in the past, I really wouldn't have blamed you if you still _hated_ me... But I'm happy to hear what's really going on, that you do like me. I don't mind waiting, and I don't mind competing with Bickslow for you. Honestly, you're worth it."

My eyes go wide in shock. He was so perceptive that he even knew who the other person was? Not to mention, he thought I was worth waiting for. I wasn't sure which part to focus on first. "Really? I mean, how'd you know about Bicks?"

He rolls his eyes "C'mon, he's my best friend. I can tell the difference between him being a pervert and being truly interested in someone."

"Oh." I mutter "Yeah, I guess that makes sense…"

"Look," He says, interrupting my musing "Let's make a deal. I'll back off and we can continue pretending that nothing happened, and focus on training. Then, when we win the games, I get to take you out on a date. If you'd like to, that is..."

I blush, and can't help but giggle when I think back to when the seith mage said the same thing. Those two were more alike than they would ever be willing to admit. "Sure. Although I gotta warn you, Bickslow plans on doing that too."

"I ain't worried about that pervert." He smirks. I laugh softly, and smile at him. When I was a kid pining over Laxus, I never thought he would be asking me on a date. I suddenly couldn't wait to be done with the games. It would be hard to choose between two great guys, but after all this time I was finally happy.

Laxus finishes his drink, and we ask the bartender if he knows of any jobs available nearby. He doesn't, so we leave and make our way to the next place. We go to a few more before finally finding something promising. It's pretty busy when we walk in and I sigh in relief at seeing the first job board we've seen so far.

"They have a job board! Thank god, I was starting to lose hope."

"Seriously." Laxus grunts, looking around "Go ahead and see what they have, I'm gonna use the men's room."

"Alright." I respond, walking over to the far wall to look over the small board with a couple papers pinned to it. "Hmmm, there's not much."

I see a few different requests for small jobs like helping with local stores or doing housework. There's one asking for someone to organize books for a nearby shop. The reward is two free tomes and a small amount of jewels. _Freed might like that one._ Most of the jobs don't pay much, and I wonder if we're better off all picking something to do solo. If we had to split the reward five ways, we'd all barely get anything. I'm lost in thought as I stare at the board and don't realize someone has come up behind me.

"I hope you don't mind the intrusion, but I've never seen you here before." A voice says.

I look back and see it's a guy with deep green eyes and mid-length black hair tied into a pony-tail. He's a bit taller than me and looks to be about the same age. He has a handsome smile and I stare for a moment before I realize he was talking to me.

"Oh, sorry! I'm (Y/n). I'm just staying nearby for a few months."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Kade. I'm not from around here, but I've been staying at this inn for a while on a job. I was wondering why I'd never noticed someone as beautiful as you before."The guy, Kade, leans down and takes my hand in his, kissing the back of it softly.

 _Well, that's fucking cliché._ I think as I smile politely at him, fighting the urge to roll my eyes.

He continues to hold my hand gently as he goes on, "So, what brings you all the way out here?"

"Training. I'm gonna be competing in the Grand Magic Games with my guild." I answer slowly, subtly trying to pull my hand away. This guy seemed friendly but I didn't feel comfortable with the prolonged contact. He finally lets go and puts his hands in the pockets of his jeans.

"I knew you were a mage!" Kade grins "What guild are you from?"

"Fairy Tail." I answer, pulling down the collar of my shirt and showing him the (f/c) guild mark that lies on my left breast.

He laughs, staring at my chest perversely before I cover it back up again. "Fairy Tail? Damn, that's funny!"

I frown, surprised at his reaction "And why is that funny?"

He lifts up his shirt, showing me a mark on his ribs and I instantly recognize it as Sabertooth's guild stamp. Kade smirks at my shocked expression "Because my guild kicks your guys' asses every single time."

"Well that won't happen this year!" I growl heatedly. Of course a Sabertooth mage would be this fucking cocky. Although, I don't remember ever seeing him at the games before. "Our strongest members have returned and we're gonna win."

"Sure, babe." He purrs and I can't contain my disgust when he drapes his arm around me. "Listen, I'm willing to look past you being a part of such a shitty guild since you're so hot. Want to come have some fun with me?"

"Yeah right!" I spat, pulling back and going to smack him, but he grabs my wrist hard.

"You shouldn't be so quick to deny me. A puny little Fairy like you should be happy to gain my attention." Kade says, pulling me towards him. I try to slip out of his hold but to no avail.

"Let me go!" I growl.

"Wow, you really are weak."

His grip tightens. I feel my bones grinding together under his hold and I grit my teeth, trying to hide my pain.

"I like that; it'll make it easier to dominate you."

"Dammit." I mumble, looking around. I'm in a tough position. There are too many people in this bar to fight him; I could end up hurting someone if he decided to fight back. My magic was too wild to let loose inside. _This guy would be done for if I could use magic. Where the hell is Laxus?_

As soon as I finish that thought, I feel a strong electrical current move through me and the Sabertooth mage drops my arm in shock. It didn't affect me, but he surely felt a sharp stinging sensation from the current.

"Is there a problem?"

I can't contain my sigh of relief when Laxus comes up to us, his stare fixed intently on Kade. I can tell he's trying hard to hold back so we don't get in trouble with the bar. With his hearing, he probably heard what the Sabertooth mage had said.

"Well, would you look at that." Kade grins, his voice full of arrogance "Another Fairy. Wait, I recognize you. You're Laxus Dreyar, the phony dragon slayer."

Laxus folds his arms, towering over the shorter man "Who the hell are you?"

"I'm Kade, a Sabertooth mage." He responds, puffing out his chest "I was just about to show this bitch a good time before your ugly ass showed up."

I glared at Kade, trying hard not to just punch him in the face. I can tell Laxus is feeling the same way as me.

"How about you get the hell out before you embarrass yourself." Laxus says, moving to stand in front of me.

"Yeah right!" Kade laughs loudly "As if a Fairy could ever beat a Sabertooth mage in a fight!"

I roll my eyes at his boasting. "I've never even seen you fight in the games before. I bet you're just simple cannon fodder, meant to build up the numbers in Sabertooth."

Kade turns to me, glaring "Who the hell are you to talk? You're just another pathetic Fairy whore. I've seen you Fairy Tail women before, I'm pretty sure your guild will accept any chick with a nice ass and rack."

My jaw drops in outrage, but before I can respond I feel electricity sparking off Laxus. The dragon slayer pulls back his fist and punches Kade in the jaw, instantly knocking him out and sending him flying into the wall. "Laxus!"

"He was getting on my damn nerves." Laxus sneers. "Let's go before the owners come yelling at us."

I agree immediately and we swiftly walk out, not slowing down until we're a few blocks away. My adrenaline is pumping and I'm still fuming, itching to fight. I can feel myself starting to lose control of my magic and I grit my teeth to calm down. Thunder clouds come rolling in despite my efforts and we take cover under a random shop's patio when it starts raining.

"Sorry..." I sigh, crossing my arms tightly as I lean against the wall. "We finally find some promising job opportunities and that asshole had to come ruin it."

"No big deal, I'm sure the others probably found some. Did he hurt you?" Laxus asks. I roll my eyes, hiding my wrist which I know will bruise.

"I'm fine. As if some b-grade Sabertooth mage could actually hurt me." I respond. He stares at me disbelievingly, gently grabbing my arm and sliding my sleeve up to look.

"I should go back there and kick his ass again." Laxus growls as he sees the marks on my wrist. He gently rubs his thumb against my skin and I blush.

"It's not a big deal." I say, looking out towards the street.

The townspeople have all run inside to avoid the rain. I feel bad, having been the cause of this storm. Now that it started there wasn't any way for me to stop it. It would have to simply continue raining until the clouds were empty. Although, I was somewhat grateful that nobody was there to witness this moment between us. Laxus was being unusually gentle and caring and it made my heart race. I remind myself again not to get distracted by my emotions.

"Sorry I didn't get there sooner."

I jerk my arm away from him, annoyed "I said I'm fine. I'm a big girl, I don't need protecting."

"You're right, my bad…"

The disappointed look on his face as he steps back makes my heart constrict, but I'm too upset to do anything about it. Neither of us says anything for a while, and the storm finally dies down. There are still clouds in the sky, but at least it's no longer raining.

"We should head back and meet up with the Thunder Legion." I suggest, and Laxus nods in agreement.

We leave, walking in silence. He keeps his distance, and I begin to feel bad for snapping at him. He was only trying to look out for me, but it pisses me off when guys act like I'm some delicate flower that can't take care of herself.

It takes us a while to get to the center of town, and the Thunder Legion is already standing there when we arrive.

"Finally!" Evergreen exclaims when she sees us "What took so long? There weren't that many bars."

"We had to stop and wait out the storm for a bit."

I glance at the lightning mage in surprise when he casually responds. He seemed to understand that I don't want to bring up what happened, and I really regret the way I acted. Laxus was a protector, and he would have reacted similarly if any of his teammates had gotten harassed like that as well. _Way to run him off (y/n). Of course he'd be worried, he likes you._ The thought that Laxus cared so much about my feelings cheers me up just a bit and I smile softly, quickly looking away when he catches me staring at him.

"I figured you two would out be enjoying a storm like that." Evergreen laughs. I was glad she was so clueless, but I wondered if anyone else realized something had happened. I was bad about losing control of my magic because of my emotions. It was something I needed to be working on, and I mentally add it to my list of things to do during training.

"So, did you guys find anything?"

I notice Bickslow is watching me intently and I avoid his gaze. Figures he would know something was up. "Nope, nothing. How about you guys?"

"We found a very lively bar that had lots of jobs options." Freed says "We didn't choose any though, we figured you guys would like to come with and help us decide."

"Sounds good" I say, faking a smile "Let's go!"

Freed and Evergreen start walking towards the bar, and Laxus follows. I sigh quietly when Bickslow discreetly moves next to me, walking slowly to create some distance between us and the other three mages.

"Did something happen?" He asks, his babies wisely staying quiet for once as they float around him.

"Just some stupid shit, it's no big deal." I shrug, shoving my clenched fists into the pockets of my jeans.

"(Y/n), I know you better than that." He says, frowning "I can tell you caused that storm, and I know you only lose control like that when you're upset."

I don't respond, choosing instead to stare at my feet, kicking rocks as we walk.

"Fine, I'll leave it alone for now." He gently drapes his arm around me "But I will get you to tell me. I know you can't deny me."

I roll my eyes, moving out from under his arm and scowling at him "You wish."

"Oh, if looks could kill!" He groans dramatically, clutching his chest. A smile slips through before I can stop it and he beams "There, that's what I wanted to see."

"Whatever." I say, trying to hide my amusement. I glance at him from the corner of my eye and grin. "Thanks Bicks."

"What are friends for, eh?" Bickslow says, his babies chirping happily "Friends, Friends!"

 _Friends, huh?_ I think, finding myself imagining what it would be like to be more than just friends with the seith mage. At the same time, I start thinking about what happened with Laxus and how he had rushed in to help me. There was no denying I felt something for the dragon slayer too. _I should probably tell Bicks while I have the chance…_ Laxus already knew about Bickslow, and it was only fair the seith mage knew as well. I bite my lip and slow my walking even more, wanting to leave enough distance to where the dragon slayer up front couldn't possibly hear us "Listen, Bicks…"

Though I can't see his face beneath his visor, I know Bickslow well enough to tell that he's looking at me from the corner of his eyes. "'Sup Stormy?"

"I want you to know something..." I begin softly, wanting to ease into the conversation. However, Bickslow seems to read my mind and speaks before I can continue.

"Is it about Laxus?" He asks quietly, and I look at him in surprise. "I could tell something happened between you two just by the look on your face."

"Shit, am I really that obvious?" I pout

"Nah, I just know you too well." He grins, but he also looks dejected and I hate that I'm the cause of it.

"Look, I really like you Bickslow, and I want to get to know you as more than a friend. But Laxus…" I sigh, watching all the people bustling through the streets as I gather my thoughts.

"I thought all the feelings I used to have for him were gone. Seeing him now though, it's all coming back. I don't know what to do… You guys both mean a lot to me. I just wanted to let you know what's going on, so you're not feeling misled. I already told Laxus I wasn't interested in continuing anything until we win the games, same as I told you. I'm not sure who to pick, and I hate the thought of hurting either of you. If you decide it's not worth waiting for, I won't blame you."

He stops walking suddenly, turning to me. "Why would it not be worth it? (Y/n), you're an amazing chick. I've never met anyone that accepts all of me the way you do. I want to win you over, and it's worth the time to try, even if you end up choosing someone else."

"I don't want you to give up having fun just for me." I frown "You could miss out on some really awesome people. If you find someone you're interested in, you don't have to hold back just because of me, okay?"

"I doubt there's anyone that could ever compare to you. I honestly have more fun just spending time with you than I ever could banging somebody." Bickslow says, caressing my cheek and smiling genuinely at me.

I laugh at his blunt words, and stare up at him, my heart pounding loudly. What had I done to deserve such incredible men? They were both completely understanding of my situation, even willing to put their bachelor lifestyles on hold for me. I jump into Bickslow's arms, hugging him tightly. We stand like that for a while before parting. I briefly find myself wishing I didn't have to choose, and could have both. That was just a silly fantasy, and I quickly dismissed the idea. There was no way those two would be okay sharing a lover with someone else. Right...?

"We should probably catch up to the others." I suggest after a moment, and he nods. We walk quickly to meet up with our group and they barely notice us sneaking up to them. We continue walking for a few more blocks before reaching a large inn that Evergreen informs us is the one we're going to. There are lots of people outside and you can hear the music from the street.

Inside, they show us a job board that had a lot more requests than the one at the bar we found. Laxus and I look over all of them while the other three point out jobs that they thought would be good. There are some well-paying jobs and we finally decide to do one big job together. I pull down the request that we agree would be the best. It involved fighting and the reward was enough for us to split and have plenty of jewels for supplies and anything else we wanted to buy.

 _Help Needed! Large creatures keep attacking farms and killing livestock! 500,000 jewel for defeating beasts._

 _Please visit the farmer's coalition at the listed address for more details._

"Isn't it kind of strange that this request wasn't sent to any guild?" Evergreen asks as we look over the paper. "Seems like a pretty big job."

"Well there isn't really any well-known guilds close by." Freed says "Maybe they figured they'd get a response quicker here. Lots of people come travelling through this town, including mages."

"Yeah, tell me about it" I grumble, thinking about my run in with the cocky Sabertooth asshole from earlier. Laxus snorts quietly at my petulant tone and they look at us questioningly. "It's nothing. So, shall we get started?"

We take the request and get directions from the bartender. He sends us out to the south edge of town, away from the mountain. There's no snow at all in this area, and it's not nearly as cold as it was on the mountain.

The address leads us to a building in the center of a small farming province outside of the city. It's a modest single-story wooden building with a playground and field. We go inside and see it's a community meeting/convention hall with a little stage. The five of us look around, not finding any people.

"Hello?" I call out "Anybody here? We're mages from Fairy Tail, we saw your request!"

A loud crash is suddenly heard, and a door opens to reveal a kind looking woman in her early thirties. She has short blonde hair and light purple eyes. She smiles awkwardly, kicking a few items back and shutting the door she came out of. "Hello! Nice to meet you, my name is Elizabeth. Let me go get my husband real quick! He's the one in charge of the request."

She leaves, walking through a different door and we stare at her in confusion.

"Well that was odd." Freed comments, and we all nod.

"Damn though, she was kinda hot!" I say quietly. With me being bi, I could fully appreciate a gorgeous woman. Despite her age, she had a youthful look about her and her voice was light and melodic. Everybody laughs at my statement and I shrug, unapologetic.

"That's my girl!" Bickslow snickers, throwing his arm around me. Laxus rolls his eyes, looking annoyed and I can't help but giggle.

We hear voices coming closer, and soon another, totally different door is being opened. Elizabeth walks out with a man I assume is her husband, a large brown haired guy with a beard and tanned skin caused by years of farming.

"Ah, thank goodness you guys are here!" The man says loudly. "Follow me to my office and I will fill you in on everything!"

He leads us to yet another door, and Bickslow murmurs quietly to me as we follow "How many fucking doors does this place have?"

I giggle at his comment as we all shuffle into the somewhat cramped office. There's a large sturdy desk that the man sits behind and we all stand awkwardly in front of it. Elizabeth closes the door behind us, leaving us alone with her husband to talk about the job.

"Allow me to introduce myself." The man says "My name is Goren and I am the head of the local farming committee. We have all pitched in to hire you mages to help us. Not very long ago, we noticed many of our fields being trampled by large beasts. It was simply a minor annoyance then, but now these things are attacking our livestock."

"What kind of beasts are they?" I ask.

"They're hodras." Goren says, and we all nod. We were all well aware of what he was talking about. "Hodras are very common nuisances among farmers. They're large pig-like beasts with nasty tusks and are known to be aggressive. They often destroyed crops and killed farm animals. These ones, however, have even begun to injure men out in the fields too."

"Do you have any idea where they're coming from?" Laxus asks.

The man shakes his head sadly "No, we don't dare try to find out lest we anger them. Our normally bustling farming province is almost a ghost town. Nobody is willing to leave their homes except when absolutely necessary. I'm sure you guys will have no trouble finding them though!"

"Yes, of course not." Freed says politely "It will be no problem! Was there anything else you needed us to know before we get started?"

"Nope that's about it. I will show you to the front now, I know these doors get confusing, hah!"

He stands up and leads us back out the front of the building. His wife is standing near the entrance, smiling gratefully at us as we leave. "If you just follow the wreckage left by the hodras, it should be easy to find their base. Thank you all so much for your help! I will be here if you need me."

With that, he shut the door. We stand there for a moment trying to comprehend what just occurred. They had been in such a hurry to get us out and working, it left us baffled. _And what was with the fucking doors, honestly?_

"Okay, those people were strange." Evergreen spoke, breaking the spell. We all nod in agreement, having thought the same thing. "But I guess he told us everything we needed to know."

"Yeah, this seems simple enough." I respond "Hodras aren't smart, we just have to track them down and subdue them. Although, with the reward so high I'm sure it must be a large pack."

"Nothing we can't handle, right babies?" Bickslow says, his totems agreeing cheerfully.

"Let's hurry up and get this over with." Laxus says, face scrunched up as he smells the air "These hodras leave a nasty scent trail that will be easy to follow. When we get close, we can split up and surround them. Freed, I want you to write some runes to keep them contained and then we all attack, sound good?"

We agree, and set off in the direction Laxus said the scent was leading to. The further we walked through the village, the worse the damage got. Many houses had been trampled, and the fields were practically barren dirt. I felt bad for the poor people whose lives had been so badly affected by the hodras.

After a few minutes, the farm fields end and we continue into the forest. Laxus leads us around in circles for a little, having trouble pinpointing the exact direction. He said their smell was completely overwhelming his senses, so we give up trying to track them that way. Instead, we begin following their tracks. Their path of destruction led us deeper and deeper through the trees. Eventually we come across a large opening that was clearly the hodras's nest. The beasts were not here however, and Laxus held his hand up, motioning for us to stay silent. He stands still, listening for them intently.

"They're coming."

Not even a minute after he spoke, we heard loud squealing and thunderous footsteps. Everyone tensed up, not sure where they would be coming from. The noise reverberated through the small space and made it impossible to pinpoint the direction they would be coming from.

"Look out!" Bickslow shouted suddenly, and we all dove out of the way just in time when the herd came running out of the forest behind us. They went barreling past us and I stood up from where I had fallen, covered in thorns.

"Of course I'd land in a freaking thorn bush!" I winced, trying to brush them off before turning back to the problem at hand. The hodras trampled everything in their path, their massive size causing so much destruction.

"Freed, keep them from getting away!" Laxus shouted, facing the beasts with lightning sparking off his body. "Everyone be ready to fight this time!"

Freed quickly set up a rune trap to keep them in a condensed area, and the sound was deafening as the herd of hodras came darting towards us again. We all got into our stances, prepared to attack.

"Fairy Bomb-Gremlin!" Evergreen moved first, throwing her dust at the hodras and causing a huge explosion. They split off, running in different directions as they cried out in anger.

"Everybody pick one!"

There's six total, and I run over to where two of them are headed. "I've got these guys."

"Hey, why do you get two?" Bickslow pouts. He's barely paying attention and nearly gets trampled by a hodra. He jumps out of the way at the last second, narrowly avoiding it.

"Shut up and focus!" Laxus warns as he sends a lightning attack directly at a particularly large hodra.

"Yeah Bicks, worry about taking out your own before you worry about anything else!" I tease as I begin attacking.

I start by quickly summoning an ice storm. The ground freezes and causes one hodra to slip, while the ice hits the other one dead on. The beast falls, taking out several trees as it slides to a stop. The remaining hodra squeals loudly in frustration as it tries to catch its balance. I glance over and see Freed using his Dark Écriture destruction spell to attack his chosen target as Bickslow's babies shoot large beams at another hodra. The creatures are running wildly within the rune trap, trying to force their way out.

"Damn these things are annoying." Laxus curses, gritting his teeth as the sound irritates his sensitive dragon hearing.

He uses his lightning dragon roar and easily takes out his hodra as I summon a dust storm to tear up my remaining target. The beast stops running, momentarily blinded by the sand and dirt swirling around it. It gives me the perfect opportunity to land the finishing blow.

"Let's hurry up and finish this so we can get our reward!" Evergreen says.

I nod in agreement, shouting out my final spell "Storm Magic; Hail!"

Large chunks of ice hit the hodra from above, finally defeating it. I catch my breath as the Thunder Legion finishes taking out the remaining hodras.

"Fuck, I hope I never have to deal with these things again."

"I think we can all agree to that." Evergreen sighs as she walks over to join me "I forgot how bad they were."

"At least you don't have to smell them like _I_ do." Laxus grumbles, a slightly green tint to his face.

"Let's go turn in to Goren." Freed says, straightening his hair. I giggle as I watch him fret over his appearance.

"You're hair is as magnificent as always Freed, don't worry." I tell him, and he scowls at my teasing.

We all start walking back to the committee headquarters, eager to finish and get our reward. Evergreen babbles excitedly about all the stuff she's going to buy with the money nearly the whole way back. Everyone kind of just blocks her out, and we're quiet as we make our way to the convention center. The whole group of farmers is there to greet us when we finally return just a little while before sundown. Their families have joined them, the young kids beaming excitedly. Goren stands at the front of the group, shaking our hands vigorously when we reach him.

"Thank you all so much!" Goren says. His wife stands beside him, holding a young boy in her arms and smiling sweetly at us. "We can finally go back to farming our lands in piece."

"It was our pleasure!" I said earnestly "Fairy Tail is always here to help."

"If we ever need you again, we'll be sure to contact your guild right away." Elizabeth says, hugging each of us as her child hides his face against her shoulder.

The entire village takes turns thanking us, and it feels great to have made a difference in these people's lives. This was one of my favorite things about being a mage. As long as you did the job right, small towns like this were always so grateful and caring. It made all the shitty jobs worth it.

I watch how the Thunder Legion reacts stiffly to the praise, being that they were all such awkward outcasts. They were still getting used to stuff like this, even though they'd been mages for so long. I supposed back when they were causing trouble for the guild, they didn't get much praise. The group could be incredibly intimidating when they chose to be.

We collect our reward after a bit of socializing and head straight back to the cabins. The sun was almost completely set we get back, and we all spend the rest of the night relaxing. We'd have plenty of time some other day to go shopping. I was way too worn out for any of that shit.

* * *

 _A/N: Alright, this is the biggest chapter so far and quite a bit happened. Sorry for any errors, I try to get all of them but some slip through_

 _I hope you guys are enjoying this story as much as I enjoy writing it! :) We're almost to the Grand Magic Games!_


	6. Chapter 6

_We've come too far to give up who we are_

 _So let's raise the bar and our cups to the stars_

* * *

The last several weeks of training fly by, and all of our abilities have grown exponentially. There's only two more days until the Grand Magic Games and I feel that we're ready to win! My attacks have gotten much stronger and more precise. My magic power had grown immensely and I could easily access my Second Origin. All around, I had improved my stamina, strength and speed. Unfortunately my rune magic did not improve as much as everything else had. It was incredibly difficult to practice two types of magic, and I chose to focus more on my main magic. Besides, I had a good enough grasp of rune magic to where it would be easy to use, and would work well. It simply didn't need to be worked as hard.

In the end, our training had been a success, and I wonder how much stronger everyone else has gotten these past three months too. Surely Natsu and his group had been working just as hard as we had. I was looking forward to facing off against them just as much as the other guilds. After being away from everyone for so long, I was really excited to see my guild mates. Laxus and the Thunder Legion were great people, but I missed the others.

Summer was here, and the townspeople buzzed excitedly about the upcoming tournament. The Grand Magic Games was incredibly popular all throughout Fiore. Laxus and I would have to arrive at the capital last minute and keep ourselves hidden the night before the games. Apparently Gramps didn't want anyone knowing about Team B, so he hasn't told them. I can only imagine the look on their faces when we reveal our team as fellow competitors. He also let Laxus know that our teammates would consist of Gajeel, Mira and Juvia, with Cana as a reserve member in case anything happened to one of us. It was a strong team, and I couldn't wait to work alongside them.

Since it was the last day before we left, we were taking full advantage of our free time. With the small amount of jewel we had, Evergreen and I went out to the town to go clothes shopping. We were all going to go out tonight to drink and celebrate, so she wanted to get a new outfit for it.

I slowly browsed the aisles of clothes, trying to decide what I wanted to wear. I'd never really been too big into fashion. Buying nice clothes all the time was hard when you barely had enough jewel for rents and necessities. Whatever I had left usually went to the guild, which I was happy to do. Fairy Tail was worth more to me than clothing and jewelry.

 _Besides, did she have to choose some place that was so expensive?_ I deadpan, quickly walking away from the item I had just looked at. Evergreen was grabbing random clothes and trying them on. I laughed at her carefree expression as she gushed about finally getting to go out with me. Doing this kind of stuff was something that made Evergreen happy, so I was glad to go along with it. Besides, every girl liked to spoil herself every once in a while.

"This would look perfect on you (Y/n)!" Evergreen suddenly shouts. She comes up to me as I'm browsing, holding a (f/c) dress that had one sleeve. "You should try it on!"

I agree instantly, loving the design. She hands it to me as I go into one of the fitting rooms. I quickly change, and admire the way I look. The dress had my left shoulder and arm bare, showing off my guild mark, while the single sleeve on the right side was long and flowing. It was a short dress and fit like a glove.

"I look damn sexy!"

Evergreen laughs at my shout from near the fitting rooms, telling me to come out so she can see it. I walk out and show off the dress to her, spinning a few times before doing a silly pose.

"Awh, my little sister is so gorgeous!" She coos "I'm so happy to have someone to shop with! Dealing with those boys all the time is such a pain."

"I bet." I laugh, imagining Bickslow trying on dresses and showing them off like I had done. The sight is not a pretty one, but it makes me laugh even harder.

I go back into the fitting room and change out of the dress, putting it back on the hanger and taking it with me. The price tag was not so bad, and it honestly looked incredible. I couldn't have found a better outfit. Evergreen has her own dress she's picked, and we get some accessories to go with our clothes. I buy some black boots and a choker to go complete my outfit. We pay for out items and head back to the cabins to get ready.

It's late at night when we finish, and I give myself a final look in the mirror. The dress looks so great and it pairs well with my choker and thigh high boots. Evergreen stands next to me, wearing a sleeveless green dress and fishnet tights with heels. Our makeup was on point, and her hair was left flowing loosely while mine was tied back, a few pieces left free to frame my face. We looked damn hot and I couldn't wait to spend time partying with my best friend and sister.

We link arms as we walk over to the boys' cabin. They're all dressed and ready to go, and I can't help admiring the two older men. Laxus is wearing a black button up shirt and maroon pants, which he had bought recently. With all the training, his muscles had gotten even larger than before. He didn't even fit into most of his old clothes. He was a beast of a man, and the sight of him made my mouth water.

I look over to Bickslow, who is wearing a blue t-shirt with a black leather jacket and jeans. His visor and hood go great with the outfit, giving him a unique look that he pulls off seamlessly. Although I wished he would take the damn visor off, because I loved his eyes. Unfortunately, he was paranoid when it came to large crowds and alcohol so he kept his eyes covered. His totems have been put away, but the souls were most likely still with him somewhere. He never went far without them. I wave in greeting to the three mages and Bickslow whistles.

"Hot damn Stormy! You look sexy!" He laughs loudly "I say we all do a shot before we leave!"

"I'm down." I grin

"Ooh, me too!" Evergreen says "Whatcha got?"

We all walk into the kitchen where Bickslow grabs a bottle of Jägermeister from the cabinets. It's one of my favorite liquors, and when I tell him so, he remarks that it's his favorite. _That probably explains why he tasted like that when we kissed,_ I think, remembering his spice and licorice taste from that night long ago.

"Ew, I hate drinking that stuff." Evergreen says, sticking her tongue out and interrupting my musing.

"Don't worry, I've got some whiskey." Laxus says, pulling out a bottle of his own. Of course those two would have alcohol stashed during our training. I can't help but giggle.

"That's much better." Evergreen sighs in relief. She was very particular about her alcohol. And honestly, she and Bickslow were just absolute opposites on almost everything.

The two guys pour the drinks into glasses for everyone, Freed choosing to drink the whiskey along with Laxus and Evergreen.

"Oh well, more for us!" Bickslow grins as he hands me a glass that was much fuller than a single shot. "I know you have a high tolerance, so I got you some extra."

"Oh, thanks Bicks!" I smile, looking down at my drink. I don't notice the seith mage shooting Laxus a smug grin. Laxus scowls, rolling his eyes and grabbing his glass. "We should toast!"

"How about we toast to all the hard work we put it these past three months?" Freed says, grinning softly.

"That's perfect." I smile, holding up my glass. Everyone follows along, raising theirs up with mine.

"To hard work!" We all shout, and I quickly add on afterwards "And winning the Grand Magic Games!"

We all clink our glasses together, quickly downing them. I relish the warmth of the liquor as it travels down my throat, enjoying the black licorice taste. We put our glasses in the sink and gather our belongings to leave. The club was part of the resort we were staying at, but it was built closer to the town to attract more off-season business. However, it still wasn't far of a walk. There were way more people here now than there were three months ago, but it wasn't super crowded.

"Wow, this place is wicked!" Bickslow shouts when we walk into the club.

The music was pounding and I felt myself grinning excitedly. The decor was extremely modern, and there were lots of bright lights flashing everywhere in time to the beat. Everyone was having a great time, and I knew this would be an amazing night.

"Let's go get some drinks!" Evergreen says, pulling me along. She turns back to the guys as we walk away "You guys find us a place to sit!"

We walk away and I giggle "I doubt there will be any open tables."

"Trust me," She grins "Those three know how to run people off! They'll find a table."

We get to the bar and order drinks for everyone, sitting and chatting while the bartender fills the large glasses. I carefully grab three, while Evergreen grabs the other two, and we go looking for the boys. It's not hard to find them, considering how much they stick out in crowds. I can't help but laugh when I see girls ogling the grumpy dragon slayer while Bickslow teases him from across the table.

"We come bearing gifts!" I call over the music. Everyone grabs their drinks and I sit beside Evergreen and Laxus. The women gathered nearby glare at us and I roll my eyes.

"Typical Laxus fan club. This happens all the time." Evergreen whispers to me.

The dragon slayer rolls his eyes when Freed turns in his seat next to Laxus and glares daggers at the women. They quickly leave and I laugh at the rune mages annoyed expression.

"Vultures." He grumbles over his glass as he takes a sip, watching the crowd.

We sit and drink for a while, content to talk and hang out. A woman comes by every once in a while to get our orders and I order alcohol way more often than the others. The excitement and lively atmosphere just made me want to let loose, especially after all the grueling training these past three months. I'm quickly feeling buzzed and I smile fervently when my favorite song comes on.

I stand up and turn to Evergreen "Sis, you should come dance with me!"

She nods excitedly "Yes! I'm so happy to have someone that's not these three losers to dance with!"

I laugh at her teasing of the other three. The only one who would even be willing to dance was Bickslow, but I'm sure he always just irritated her the whole time. We finish off our drinks and link hands as we walk together out onto the dance floor, quickly moving into the crowd of people and finding a good spot. I stayed close to her the whole time, and we started dancing to the loud beat of the music. The alcohol in my blood had me feeling carefree, and I enjoyed my time with my sister. A few guys come up to us, wanting to dance, and we simply ignore them. Normally, I'd happily dance with some of them, but not tonight. Besides, two sexiest guys here were already at my table, willing to wait for me.

A few songs go by before I glance over to where the guys are at. Laxus was in the middle of a card game with Freed, and Bickslow was flirting with a waitress with blonde hair and dark lipstick. The sight of him flirting with someone stings slightly, but I ignore it. That's just the way Bickslow is,so it's no big deal... _Right?_

I'm nearly too drunk to care anyway, so I quickly look away and focus back on dancing.

After a couple more songs pass, Evergreen breathlessly suggests we go back to the bar for more drinks and I agree. We both do shots of vodka, and I feel it numbing me. I do a second one while Evergreen orders herself some water. My second shot sends a shiver through me. Evergreen notices my grimace and offers me a drink. I take a small sip before I hand the glass back to her. She says something to me that I hardly hear and I look at her questioningly.

"Let's go sit down!" She shouts, pulling me away from the bar.

We stumble through the crowd as we head back to our table. I sit down next to Freed and Evergreen starts talking to him. I briefly notice that Bickslow is still chatting the blonde waitress, and I can't help but listen in on them. Right away I can tell he's convincing her to give us free drinks and I giggle. _Of course, it's Bickslow. Why did I even doubt him?_ He did that often, and it never really bothered me because I knew he wasn't being mean or thoughtless. Besides, he told me honestly that he only wanted me, so a little flirting was harmless.

I sit quietly, not really paying attention to anything and eventually she leaves. It's late into the night when Evergreen then tells us that Freed is going to walk her home, and I decide to stay and hang out awhile longer. I was looking forward to spending more time celebrating. I wave brightly to them before they walk away, not noticing the devious looks on their faces as they leave me with Bickslow and Laxus.

"I got us some free drinks." Bickslow says as he leans over and gently pushes on my shoulder.

"Of course you did. You could probably flirt the pants off a nun." I laugh, my words slurring terribly. He grins widely at me and Laxus rolls his eyes.

"Hey, whatever works right?" Bickslow says, and quickly goes quiet when the girl walks up to us and sets down a few shots. She laughs at something he says and then leaves, busy with other tables.

I quickly down the shot offered to me, realizing a minute later that I've hit my limit. My mind starts growing fuzzy and I lean back in my chair. Laxus and Bickslow sit and talk for a while and I simply watch them quietly. I find my mind wandering to all the feelings I have for them both. It was going to be so hard to choose between the two, and it made me sad to know I'd be hurting one of them. I find myself once again wishing that I didn't have to choose. I wished we could all find happiness together. Tears sprang to my eyes without permission, and my mouth moved before I knew what I was saying "I wish I could have both of you."

They stop talking, looking over at me in surprise. I turn away, blushing brightly and bite my lip. _Why did I say that?!_ "Uh, sorry. I didn't mean that… I think I'm gonna head home!"

I stand up quickly, feeling my head rush and I nearly fall. Laxus catches me and I briefly remember standing back up before my memory grows black…

(Third Person POV)

Laxus sighs when he looks down at the drunk mage he caught in his arms. Her eyes are totally glassy and he realizes she'd gone past her limit. She licks her lips as she looks up at him, her breasts pressed against his chest, and it tests his control. "Damn (Y/n)."

"Wow, she's hammered." Bickslow comments with a laugh and Laxus shoots the other man a glare.

The storm mage giggles and wobbles slightly when she stands, pulling away from Laxus. Her voice is heavily slurred when she speaks "Sorry Sparky! I just got up too fast. And probably took to many shots, ha!"

The lightning mage deadpans at the nickname "I think we should probably get you back."

Bickslow stands up "I'll help."

The two men stand on either side of (Y/n), letting her walk on her own and making sure she doesn't trip. Both guys are pretty drunk themselves, and they all shuffle to their cabins slowly.

"So (Y/n), you said something back at the club that caught my interest…" Bickslow suddenly grins, and she giggles. "You want both of us, eh?"

"Bicks…" Laxus growls lowly in warning. He knew the man could be pushy, and he was sure (Y/n) didn't want to talk about it. She was drunk, and she could say something she'd regret. He didn't want that.

She looks away from them and doesn't respond for a while. Bickslow starts to feel like maybe he upset her, but her face suddenly gets red and she giggles. Laxus catches the slight scent of her arousal and his eyes go wide as he looks at her.

"God, if we had a threesome I would get smooshed… but it would be so hot!" She hiccups as she talks, and they groan, instantly picturing dirty things. "You guys would never be okay with that though, huh…"

Bickslow cackles, sticking his tongue out "Hey, I'm down for anything!"

Laxus scowls, annoyed by the younger man's constant pervertedness. He saw the hurt look in (Y/n)'s eyes earlier when she saw Bickslow flirting with the blonde waitress."Of course you are. You don't care what's going on as long as you get your dick wet. Hell, I'm surprised you didn't take that other chick home."

"Like you're one to talk!" Bickslow says, frowning. Why was Laxus suddenly giving him a hard time about that kind of shit? "You fuck random chicks all the time. It's not a big deal, even (Y/n) has done it!"

The girl laughs, not having grasped the seriousness of the two mage's conversation. Laxus stops and turns angrily towards the seith mage. The alcohol in his blood gave him the courage to speak his mind.

"Yeah, but how do you think she would feel about it now? With both of us trying to date her? I don't even bother looking at women when I have a chance with her. If you're not serious about being with (Y/n) then you should just fuck off. She deserves better than someone who'd probably dump her in a second if someone else showed any interest."

"You think I would do something like that to her?" Bickslow asks heatedly "I've been her best friend; I've been there to cheer her up when she was sad and make her laugh when she was angry, even before the seven year gap. I would never hurt her, unlike _you!_ All you've ever done is ignore her and treat her like shit, so don't come at me about my flirting when you only gave her the time of day after she grew up and got strong!"

"That's not how it is at all!" Laxus growls, his voice lowering dangerously.

Bickslow was right though, he had hurt her. Did he ever deserve the chance to be with her after that? He wasn't sure.

The two men glare at each other while (Y/n) stands between them. She had finally noticed the heated argument and realized what it's about. Huge tears collect in her eyes and she sniffs. The sound gets their attention, and they look down at her.

"What's wrong?" Laxus asks awkwardly. He was not good with crying.

"This is exactly what I didn't want!" She says, furiously wiping away her tears "I'm not worth fighting over, so you guys just need to stop. You're too good of friends to argue over some chick."

"Hey, don't cry Stormy." Bickslow says, feeling guilty about making her upset. "We were just messing around."

"Don't lie to me." (Y/n) growls, pulling away as the seith mage tries to reach for her.

Laxus sighs, gently grabbing her shoulders and turning her to look into her (E/c) eyes. She tries to hide her face but he grips her chin to keep her facing him. "You need to stop that thinking in its tracks (Y/n).You are not just some chick, you're important to both of us. Honestly, I don't even deserve the time of day from you after what I've done."

"That's not true..."

Laxus turns in surprise at the masculine voice to see Bickslow rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. Both sets of eyes are watching the man as he continues.

"You made some mistakes, but that's in the past. You've done more than enough to make up for what happened... If anything, I don't deserve (Y/n). I'm self-centered and inconsiderate, and I'm not good enough for someone so beautiful and kindhearted. You're right Laxus. I'll only end up hurting her, even if it is on accident..."

"Bickslow…" Laxus begins, but his words trail off as he stares at his oldest friend. This man had been by his side through everything, and of course they'd had their fair share of arguments. Often they led to fist fights, but never before had they fought over a girl. They'd especially never made amends with each other as quickly as they just had. This was something entirely different for them.

"You two are ridiculous." (Y/n) sighs, brushing away the remainder of her tears "You're both incredible people, so don't say things like that. And please don't fight anymore. I don't want to come between you two."

"You're not (Y/n)." Bickslow says, smiling softly at the storm mage. "We're friends above all else, something like this wont tear us apart."

"He's right." Laxus says, turning back to the woman, "I'm sorry we dragged you into our bullshit. You've been trying to avoid all this and yet we brought it upon you anyway. Don't worry, alright? Your happiness matters more to us than some stupid disagreement."

She smiles and he brushes away some hair that has fallen in her face. Laxus can hear the way her heart is pounding and it makes him pleased to know how he affects her. He pulls her closer, hugging her tightly. As he holds her, he can't help but wonder when he started falling for the young storm mage.

After a moment, Bickslow folds his arms and loudly huffs "Don't start acting all lovey with me right here!"

(Y/n) laughs, pulling away from Laxus and turning to the seith mage. He grins as she walks up to him and throws her arms around him. Laxus watches as they hug, and he realizes it doesn't really make him jealous like he thought it would. Normally any competition would cause his inner dragon to roar, demanding he take out the rivaling male.

He wonders if maybe it's because of how much history he has with Bickslow. They had been friends from the day the seith mage joined the guild. Back then, Laxus saw a strong mage who didn't fit in with the other kids, just like himself, and it drew the two together. Through their teen years, the two had experimented sexually with each other, although if anyone asked Laxus would deny it. Perhaps that had something to do with why Laxus didn't mind.

As he thought about their fight just now, he realized it wasn't jealousy or rivalry that caused it. Laxus was simply worried that the seith mage wasn't truly interested in (Y/n) and would hurt her, but the seith mage had shown otherwise. Bickslow was just a flirt, plain and simple, and (Y/n) didn't seem to mind too much. Those two went so well together, and it had Laxus wondering if maybe the best thing for her was for the two men to come to an agreement. Laxus didn't want to give up, but he didn't want to hurt (Y/n) by making her choose.

 _Maybe we could try to share?_ Laxus thinks, surprised that the thought of doing that with Bickslow isn't totally disturbing. Could they just all three be in a relationship together? Was that possible? Laxus had long ago admitted that he found the seith mage interesting and attractive, but never thought about being involved with him in any kind of way. It was something he would be willing to try though, especially if it made (Y/n) happy.

Bickslow notices Laxus's intense look and grins, somehow understanding what the dragon slayer had just been thinking about. "Come join the hug boss."

He rolls his eyes, but complies. He presses against (Y/n)'s back and she sighs happily, leaning her head back against his large chest while her arms stay wrapped around Bickslow.

"You guys are amazing." She mutters. They hold each other for a while, letting the alcohol give them to courage to try something new. The men give each other a meaningful look, promising to talk when they got back to the cabins. The trio finally parts, and they walk quietly home.

(Y/n) waves from the front door as the two men watch her go inside, and she quickly passes out when she reaches her bed. Bickslow sighs "Man, what I wouldn't give to be in there with her."

"Keep it in your pants dude." Laxus says.

The seith mage laughs, and the two men go into their own cabin to talk quietly. They wonder if (Y/n) will remember everything that happened, and hope they could talk to her soon to work through these emotions. Laxus mentioned his idea to Bickslow, who informed the older man that it actually had a name. Polyamory... Was that something (Y/n) would be okay with? Both mages agreed that they could deal with each other if that's what the younger woman truly desired.

(READER POV)

I wake up with a dry mouth and no memory of getting home. The sun is shining brightly and I cover my head with the blankets to block it out. I lay there for a few minutes trying to remember my night. Last thing I could recall was Bickslow handing me a shot from the blonde waitress. After trying to remember more, the best I could come up with was saying something to Laxus and Bickslow and trying to stand up. _Maybe I just went home?_

"I really hope I didn't do anything embarrassing" I mumble, getting out of bed and going to the bathroom. I brush my teeth thoroughly after using the toilet, trying to get the grimy taste out of my mouth. My hair and makeup is a mess, but I can't be bothered to care. It was still too early. I leave the bathroom and head towards the kitchen. Evergreen is drinking her morning tea and silently hands me a glass of water when I plop down at the table.

"Have fun?" She grins, looking at my disheveled appearance.

I groan, laying my head on the cold counter after downing the glass in one go "I don't even remember getting home."

She shrugs "Freed and I left before you guys, so I don't know. I fell asleep as soon as I got back. I'm sure Laxus and Bickslow took good care of you though."

"Yeah" I agree.

They were two great and honest men, and I was confident that nothing bad happened while I was with them. I just hoped I didn't say or do anything stupid.

"We leave for the train station in two hours, so you should probably start packing and get ready." Evergreen says. I look at the time and see it's already well past noon.

"Damn, I slept for so long!" I pout, slowly standing up and grabbing a snack before I go back into my room to settle my stomach. I take my time packing up all my clothes, leaving out some comfy pants and a t-shirt to wear today. I take a long hot shower and by the time I'm ready to leave I feel a lot better.

The guys come over to our cabin while I'm lying on the couch waiting for Evergreen to finish packing her stuff. _Of course, she was rushing me to get ready and here we are, waiting on her._ They men have all their belongings with them and they set them down next to mine by the door. I grunt in greeting as they enter the living room..

"Wow, what a warm welcome (Y/n)." Bickslow jokes and I sigh at his loud tone. My headache had just barely started to subside.

"Yeah, well I'm still getting over my hangover." I say "What happened? All I remember is taking that shot you got from the waitress and then nothing."

"You tried to get up and ended up almost falling, so we took you home." Laxus shrugs, and I get the feeling he's hiding something.

I glance at Bickslow who is simply grinning. I decide to ignore it for now, not having the energy to interrogate the two men. "Right…"

Evergreen walks out, carrying her luggage bags. "Alright, everyone ready?"

"Yeah, we've all been waiting for your slow ass." Bickslow teases and she smacks the back of his head as she walks past him. I stand up, silently grabbing my stuff and we all leave.

That conversation had left an odd taste in my mouth. I wish I could remember what happened. _That's what you get for getting so drunk, dumbass._

It takes us a little while to check out of the resort, and soon we're turning in the keys to the cabins and leaving. We then make the long trek back to the train station on the other side of town, reminiscing on our time here. I was going to miss Honeywort, but I was so ready to get to Crocus. It'd been so long since I'd seen everyone, and I couldn't wait for the games to start! We buy our tickets for the capital city and have to wait for a few minutes before boarding the train. It's only a few hours to Crocus, and we all spend majority of the train ride sleeping. I can't shake the odd sense of foreboding I feel the entire time...

* * *

 _A/n: Let me just say I am so glad to be done with the training arc! Things are gonna start happening finally, hope to see you all next chapter :) On to the Grand Magic games!_


	7. Chapter 7

_I'm ready for love, and I'm ready for war_

 _But I'm ready for more_

 _I know that nobody's ever been this fucking ready before_

* * *

When we get to the capital late in the evening, we head straight for the Honeybone Inn that was going to be our housing for the duration of the games. Makarov greets us at the bar and tells Laxus and I that we will be staying in a room with the other members of our team. The other team is off exploring the capital, having been warned about the strict curfew tonight. I wished we could have gone to explore the city, but perhaps I'd get a chance later. I've been here a few times anyway, just would have loved to show my friends around.

The Thunder Legion leaves to their own rooms and Laxus leads the way to the one we'll be sharing with Gajeel, Mira, and Juvia. I'm dreading having to share with so many people, but at least we won't have to stay cooped up often with the games' busy schedule. Juvia was not in the room when we walked in, and I wave in greeting to Gajeel and Mirajane.

"Hi guys!" Mira says excitedly as she comes up to me "How was your training?"

We hug and I smile at the take-over mage "It went great. I'm so ready to kick some Sabertooth butt!"

Gajeel stands and hugs me after Mira lets me go to greet Laxus. "Hell yeah, it's gonna be sweet."

We sit and talk for a while, all of us telling stories from our training before Juvia shows up. She informs us of her trip to the spirit world and I stare in shock. Hopefully, they didn't fall too far behind because of that. It had to have been amazing though, and I feel a slight bit of jealousy. But, at the same time, I enjoyed my days with Laxus and the Thunder Legion a lot and wouldn't trade them for anything.

It's nearly midnight when we finish our stories, and we are all starting to feel anxious. They had told us all that we must be in our rooms by that time and nobody knew why. I had taken part in many of these games over the years, but it was always different. It had never started this way before.

"I wonder what they'll do this year." I say, bouncing my leg nervously.

"Whatever it is, we'll do fine. Don't worry (Y/n)." Laxus places his hand on my knee to stop the bouncing and I smile gratefully at him. I don't realize how our interaction might look to everyone else until I hear Mira's squealing and Gajeel's grumbling.

"Quit giving each other bedroom eyes, it's disgusting."

"Shut up Gajeel." I reach over and punch him hard and he laughs, wincing slightly. I barely have time to enjoy the satisfaction of bruising the man before Mira starts clapping excitedly.

"You guys are so cute! Did something happen between you two during your training?" Mira giggles and I roll my eyes.

"I wish Gray-sama would look at Juvia like that!" The water mage sighs dramatically.

"That's it, I'm out. You guys are ridiculous." I stand up to go onto the balcony get some fresh air when suddenly the clocks chime midnight. Everything goes quiet, and we stay still as we wait for whatever was going on. We suddenly hear a loud voice from outside and collectively look to see what was going on.

"The fuck is that supposed to be?" Laxus sneers, crossing his arms as we stand and watch the large projection of a pumpkin headed man talking.

I giggle at Laxus's disturbed expression as the projection begins to speak. We all listen intently to what he says as he goes on to explain how they'd be having a preliminary round. Only 8 teams would be able to compete this year, and they created an elaborate sky labyrinth to narrow it down.

I feel myself getting nervous again. I had never heard of anything like this happening before. He finishes his explanation and I glance at my guild mates. They all look determined, and I steel my resolve. I wasn't alone, I had incredibly strong teammates with me. We could do this.

Suddenly, the ground starts to shake beneath us. I sigh when I see Laxus and Gajeel hold their hands to their mouths at the movement. The pumpkin headed man continues explaining how the sly labyrinth works as the inn rises towards it. Eventually the building stops moving and a path opens up in front of us. Laxus and Gajeel shake off their sickness and tense in preparation. This was a race, and it would take a lot of skill and speed to get to the finish line.

"Be prepared for anything guys." Laxus says and we all nod, waiting for the signal.

They announce the start and we all take off at a sprint towards the Sky Labyrinth. Laxus takes up the lead and I run behind him next to Juvia. Mira and Gajeel are directly behind us and we all make it there quickly.

When we get inside the labyrinth I take a moment to look around in wonder. There were tons of stairways leading in all different directions. It was the strangest looking thing I'd ever seen.

"Which way do we go?" I mutter as I frown in confusion.

"This place makes no sense." Gajeel grumbles.

"Well we're not doing any good just standing here." Laxus says "Let's get moving."

It takes us awhile of trial and error before we finally formulate a strategy. We have no problem taking out other guilds we come across, and it was easy to avoid falling every time the arena shifted. Laxus and I would teleport, one of us grabbing Juvia while Mira transformed into her Satan form and flew. Gajeel used his metal to create spikes out of his boots to keep himself tethered, and we quickly moved on. The shifting eliminated many other teams, and before I knew it we were nearing the finish line.

"I wonder how we placed!" I grin breathlessly as we run the final stretch. I didn't see anyone behind us, and was hopeful that we came in first.

"We'll find out when we get there!" Mira says.

"God this path is fucking long." Gajeel growls.

"Juvia wishes she would have worked on cardio!"

"If we didn't have to stay with you slow pokes, me and (Y/n) could have teleported and finished already." Laxus teases and we fist-bump, looking smug. Gajeel rolls his eyes at us and we continue on.

After running for what feels like miles, we finally reach the end. There's a door with the word goal above it in random colors, and the announcer is standing there grinning.

"Hey, it's pumpkin-head!" Gajeel snorts, and the man, Mato, glares at him.

"Congratulations Fairy Tail on finishing the preliminary rounds!" Mato grumbles, turning away from Gajeel. "You have surprisingly come in second, great job."

"Wow, that's awesome!" I say, turning to the two girls on my team and squealing excitedly while the boys deadpan.

"Surprisingly?" Gajeel grouses, looking at Laxus who simply shrugs.

"Eh, who cares? This is only the beginning." He grins.

We leave through the door, which instantly transports us back to our room at the inn. I pace excitedly, my adrenaline still pumping. Lightning sparks off my body and Laxus starts absorbing the sparks so they didn't hit anyone.

"Calm down Sparky." He says and I stop pacing and stick my tongue out at him.

"Isn't that your nickname?" I ask, sitting on my bed to relax. He glares at me and I laugh at his trying-to-be-intimidating look. "If you keep making that face it'll stay like that."

"Good." He says as he flops down onto the couch. He kicks his feet onto the table and rests his arms behind his head. I sneak a glance at him in his tight shirt before looking away. _Wow, sharing a room with him is going to be difficult._

"Juvia hopes Gray-sama is doing okay!" Juvia sighs as she drops down dramatically onto her mattress next to me. She has large tears in her eyes and looks like she might melt into a puddle.

"Stop crying before you drown us all." Gajeel barks as he sits on his bed at the other side of the room near Laxus.

"They're gonna do great!" Mira says, patting the water mages back comfortingly. "It was so much fun!"

"That's your idea of fun?" I giggle. This was such an odd group.

I beging pulling off my shirt to change into more comfortable clothes. I wore a black sports bra underneath that I was going to sleep in. I quickly take off my jeans and change into pajama pants, hardly concerned about the two men in the room. Changing in front of other people was something you got used to as a mage. There were often times when you'd have to share spaces and it was normal to see your teammates undress. Besides, I was damn fine! I didn't care who saw me that way.

Everyone one else gets changed into sleep clothes and we settle in, waiting for the final announcement that signaled the end of the preliminary round. We could hear the various explosions going off before it finally grew quiet. The pumpkin guy announced that the last guild had placed, and told everyone they would be starting the first event in the morning. With that, we all quickly fell asleep.

 _(Grand Magic Games Day 1!)_

"Man, I can't wait to see who we'll be competing against." Mira says as we stand in a long tunnel under the Domus Flau.

I tighten my pony tail, checking over my attire. I was wearing a black v-neck shirt and shorts with a dark gray vest, matching our team's color scheme. It paired well with my thigh high socks and combat boots. It would also be easier to fight in than a dress. I pace restlessly while we wait. The crowd is muffled, but I can tell the arena must be packed with people. They start announcing the placement of teams, and I laugh when I see Fairy Tail Team A finished in 8th.

"Maybe _they_ should be Team B." Gajeel chuckles.

"I can't wait to make Erza do my bidding!" Mira's face is dark, and I shudder in fear despite it not even being directed at me. The poor requip mage was in for a rough day if we won the competition.

They begin listing off the other guilds that placed, many of which didn't surprise me at all. However, I was shocked to learn about Raven Tail being allowed to compete in the games. Up until recently, they were a dark guild, and I wasn't aware their guild status had changed. How it was even fucking allowed was anyone's guess.

I'm broken out of my thoughts when they finally announce us at 2nd place. We walk onto the field to cries of disbelief. Laxus and I coat the team in lightning, the boom making a grand entrance. The look on the other Fairy Tail team's face is priceless, and we grin at them. I notice that Elfman has replaced Wendy, and I briefly wonder if she's okay. She and I were good friends when we were kids, and I barely had any time to hang out with her before we left for training.

The other teams are just as shocked to see a second Fairy Tail team, and so is the crowd. Yajima explains the new rule about entering two teams from his spot at the commentators stand.

"Why didn't you tell us about this Master?" Lucy pouts.

Makarov simply cackles, "You like that? This is how Fairy Tail takes care of business!"

Team A frowns as the rest of our guild begins to cheer loudly. I giggle, and look over to see Laxus staring intently at Raven Tail, completely ignoring everything. I tug on his sleeve to get his attention.

"Don't let those bastards get to you." I whisper. He nods absently, and we turn our attention back to the announcers as they continue.

"Last but not least, the team that came in first!" the announcer shouts, and we look across the field to see five more mages walk out. "That's right, the guild we all know and love, the strongest in Fiore-Sabertooth!"

The crowd goes wild, and I glare heatedly at the group of mages, instantly recognizing all of them except the woman, who looked a lot like Lisanna. The sight of the Sabertooth mages had my blood boiling. They often ridiculed me when I participated, and I have personal beef with the lightning god slayer, Orga. He had yet to actually beat me one-on-one, but still insisted he was a better mage. He sees me glaring and cackles.

"Well well, if it isn't the little wanna-be lightning mage." He jeers, and I feel my face flame up.

"I use storm magic!" I respond, my magic power swirling around me. Laxus grips my shoulder, and I back down.

"Don't let them get to you (Y/n)." He says evenly, copying my words. I nod and breathe out to calm myself.

I look over to where our guild is cheering us on, and I see Bickslow shouting wildly with Evergreen and Freed. I wave to them, feeling content to finally have all my nakama here to support me.

The announcers begin talking again, and we focus on learning the schedule for the tournament. A large rock bursts from the ground showing us how the next few days will be. It was a busy schedule, each day having one group competition followed by individual battles.

They continue on with the rules and before I know it, they have us select team members to participate in the event called Hidden. I turn to my teammates as we discuss who should go first. Laxus seems eager to compete, but before we can decide, Juvia sees that Gray is competing and declares that she will go.

"Don't go getting distracted Juvia!" Gajeel growls and we sigh as she runs off to join the other contestants.

We head up to our team's sitting area as a town manifests in the middle of the arena. We lose sight of everyone until they pull up the large lacrima screens for us to watch. I stand next to Mira and Laxus and soon the game begins.

"Oh, no..."

I groan when they begin explaining the game and a bunch of look-alike's appear in the city. Juvia gets hearts in her eyes when she's surrounded by Grays, and she hugs one excitedly. She's instantly penalized and thrown to another part of the city, and the announcers finish explaining the rules.

"What an idiot!" Gajeel groans, and Mira giggles.

"She's gonna have some trouble with this one!"

"We wouldn't be having this problem if I had been the one competing." Laxus grumbles. I nod silently in agreement.

We watch for a little longer before Gray is confronted by a guy from Raven Tail. He tricks the ice wizard into attacking a fake, and Gray loses a point.

"Dammit!" I mutter, clenching my fist against the stone wall in front of me. Mira rubs my back comfortingly.

"It's just the beginning sweetheart, don't worry." She smiles, but her eyes are hardened in determination.

I nod, and restlessly watch the rest of the competition. The game finishes with our team in 7th and Team A in last. I feel tears of frustration come up, but I quickly remind myself of Mira's words and blink them away. _It's only the beginning._ Juvia returns to boos from the crowd. Gray walks off, his face dark in rage as he ignores his team and leaves the arena.

They announce that the first battle will take place shortly, between Lucy and a red haired woman from Raven Tail. I hoped she'd be okay after what happened to Gray and Juvia. It seemed that Ivan's guild fully intended on targeting us rather than focusing on winning, which was apparent after the first competition.

I couldn't believe that even after seven years, Laxus's father still harbored such a deep desire for revenge against Makarov and our guild. His own flesh and blood were gone without a trace, and while we mourned, he continued with his plans to destroy us. It sickened me. I glance over at Laxus, who is glaring at his father's team. It was not surprising to see that he was feeling dismayed. I just wished there was some way I could help him feel better…

We wait silently for the match to start and Lucy manages to hold her own against Flare at first. The tide turns however as Lucy starts taking hits without fighting back, and we all shout in confusion. Why was she just standing there doing nothing? She'd been doing well before that!

After a minute, I see Natsu yelling something from the stands to his teammate and Lucy begins to attack again. Her bright magic power fills the stadium and we watch in admiration as she calls out Gemini and begins her Urano Metria spell. There was no way Flare would we able to make it through this. She was done for!

When she finished her chanting and stars burst forth, it seems like Lucy is going to win. However, the spell is suddenly cancelled out and the smoke clears to show Flare completely unharmed. She looks over to her team in shock as Lucy faints, her magic power totally drained.

"Those fuckers cheated!" I shout, leaning over the rails "They had something to do with that spell being nullified! She would have won!"

I feel lightning sparking off my body, and I'm about ready to jump over the railing to confront Raven Tail. Laxus grabs me around the waist and drags me back, kicking and screaming. Mira watches sadly while Gajeel scowls silently.

"Let me go you bastard!" I say as Laxus begins absorbing my lightning. "I'll fight 'em all!"

"(Y/n), please." He growls and I still at his tone, ceasing my magic. He pulls me closer to him, burying his face in my neck. His grip is tight around me and my back is pressed flush against him. I turn my head back, trying to read his expression. I had no idea what he was ever thinking. Although, I was sure he was beyond pissed, being that his own father was running the guild that continued targeting us.

"Laxus…." I mumble.

"Don't you worry, I'll get them back for everything. So just calm down, alright? It's gonna be okay." He says determinedly, and I nod as tears slide down my cheeks.

"Yeah." I turn around and hug him back "Thanks."

I bury my face in his coat, ignoring all the jeers from the crowd as Lucy leaves the arena. The other two mages stay silent as Laxus and I hold each other. I'm grateful that Mira has the sense not to comment on our embrace. Surely she understood the severity of the situation.

I can't help but wish the Thunder Legion was with us. I know both Laxus and I could use the extra support. The man would never admit, but he loved his team a lot. Laxus was such a fierce protector when it came to those he cared about. It was one of the things I loved most about him. _Love...?_

My grip tightens on Laxus briefly before I pull away with a sigh. That was not something I wanted to think about at the moment. The next battle was about to begin. However, I hardly pay attention to the next few matches until I hear Orga's name. He's paired up with some poor sap from Quatro Cerberus, and I sigh.

"This will be quick."

Sure enough, Orga defeats the man with a single black lightning attack. I see how confused my teammates are and realize they didn't know him. Of course, I'd seen his guild rise to stardom, with him always on their team. He was such a cocky bastard and I hated him. It had been like dealing with a worse, less attractive version of Laxus (who I had still harbored bitterness towards at the time).

I explain to my team that Orga is the lightning devil slayer. I go on to tell them that he and I have always come to a draw when it came to magic competitions. Orga had beaten me a few times when it came to brute strength, but I definitely outwitted that jar head. Laxus takes great interest, and I notice the way his eyes glint in excitement. The dragon slayer loved fighting strong opponents.

There's one more battle left, which will be our team and Lamia scale. We're led down to one of the tunnels that lead to the arena and we wait for them to announce the competitors. I'm not too worried, knowing that they'll probably pair up Laxus or Gajeel with someone to put on a good show. I wonder if they'll pair our member with Jura, being that he was the most popular member partaking in Lamia Scale this year. He and Laxus were probably pretty similar skill wise. Jura was not as quick as Laxus, but he was a Wizard Saint after all. It would make sense to choose those two.

I'm lost in my musings when I hear my name called over the speakers, quickly followed by Jura Neekis. I gape in shock, and look over at Laxus. He looks just as surprised, and I feel myself dreading this upcoming fight. There had to be some mistake, there was no way they'd choose me to fight a fucking Wizard Saint!

"Wow, tough luck kid." Gajeel chuckles.

"Who'd have thought they'd make you fight Jura…" Mira comments sadly. "I don't think me and Erza combined could beat him."

I bite my lip, extremely nervous and on the verge of full blown panic. Laxus grabs my chin, forcing me to focus on him "Give it your all (Y/n). Don't be nervous, just fight until you can't fight anymore, and then get back up again. You're just a strong as I am, I know you'll do well."

I nod absentmindedly as I'm pulled away by security and led to the arena floor. It seemed bigger from down here, and I looked around at all the fans holding signs for Jura. My mind was reeling, but suddenly I heard three voices from my right. I looked over and saw the Thunder Legion holding a sparkling banner with my name and I giggled. Bickslow waved when he saw me looking, blowing me a kiss and sticking out his tongue. His babies swirled excitedly around him, shouting my name. The whole guild was cheering for me, and it helped to give me the confidence to fight.

I focus on the Wizard Saint in front of me and bow in greeting "Jura. I look forward to our match."

Jura smiled "Yes, me too. I hope you know I won't be going easy on you."

"Good, cuz I'm giving this match my all." I respond "I've been waiting for this moment for seven years, and I'm not going to let my guild down ever again!"

The horns blow and the timer begins, and I instantly go on the offensive, sending a lightning storm towards him. Jura blocks it, and counteracts with large boulders that I quickly dodge. I use an attack like that often with my earthquake magic, and found it easy to predict when the ground would be moving. I run and jump along the rocks, using them to propel me forward. I get close Jura and summon an ice storm, surrounding him. The ice slices against him, and he erects a rock barrier, dispersing my spell.

He silently summons a large fist from stone, and I use my earthquake magic to deflect it. His rock was too strong though, and I curse as it breaks my barrier, sending me flying back. Bits of rock and dirt land on me, and I decide that instead of using the same element as the Wizard Saint, I should use something that counteracts earth. That was the great part of storm magic; I could control many different elements.

I decide to use my water based attacks, and quickly summon a hurricane. The winds pick up speed, throwing dirt into the air and Jura shuts his eyes to avoid it. The faint shouts of the people in the crowd grow louder, and I focus the spell directly at the earth mage. He tries using another rock barrier again, but this time the water corrodes it away quickly and he's pushed back.

"Wow, you're better than I thought you'd be. I should have expected this from one of Makarov-dono's members." He laughs as he lands on his feet. He looks completely calm and I grit my teeth. "Guess I really need to step it up!"

"Bring it on old man!" I growl.

I take a moment to catch my breath and prepare for the next onslaught of attacks. This was Fairy Tail's last chance to get points today, and if that meant simply holding out long enough to tie, then so be it.

He starts shooting large boulders at me and I weave around them, using my teleportation to move quicker. I sense that he's about to start shooting pillars of rock up at me, and I carefully jump up onto one to get some distance from the floor.

"Storm magic-Tsunami!"

The arena is flooded, knocking over the Wizard Saint. He quickly elevates the ground beneath him, bringing him up to where I'm standing on a separate platform. I pant quietly, having used up a lot of magic power already. Jura is dripping wet, but he stands again. I curse. _This guy just doesn't quit!_

"I think it's time I stopped playing and end this."

He grins at me and I feel his power grow even more. The feeling was completely overwhelming. I didn't have enough magic left to do anything but try to block his next attack.

 _Dammit, I thought I'd be okay but there's no way to beat this monster._

I feel dread enter me as he gears up for a stronger attack than all his others. The crowd goes wild as Jura summons a lot of magic and rapidly moves his hand in my direction.

"Supreme King Rock Crush."

Large boulders come flying at me, and I brace myself, unable to dodge. I knew a little about this spell, and quickly summoned a coating of ice around me to lessen the blow. It was all I could do at this point.

The rocks surrounded me fully, and a wave of energy flew out from Jura, crushing the rocks with me cased inside. I cried out as the rock broke through my ice, the force of it hitting me like a thousand fists.

The rocks fall away and I drop to the floor, unable to move. The cheering grows louder as Jura is proclaimed winner. I grit my teeth and close my eyes, fighting the humiliation of losing. My whole body ached, and I had no strength left.

"You did well, (Y/n)-dono." Jura said softly as he came up to me and helped me stand. I could only hobble along as the Wizard Saint led me to where my team was. Laxus quickly scooped me into his arms, heading for the infirmary.

"I can walk." I groaned, fighting to stay awake. "Put me down."

"Not happening." Laxus said as Gajeel and Mirajane followed. There were no more matches for the day, and I sighed when I realized both Fairy Tail teams were in last. I had failed..

I tried hard to fight tears the entire way.

"That was a great match (Y/n)." Mira said as we reached the team infirmary. I don't even bother responding.

When go inside, and I see that Wendy is sleeping deeply with Carla lying next to her. Lucy had just barely left, so it was only me and my team (minus Juvia, who was still upset about her own competition) and Porlyusica, who gives us a dirty look when we walk in.

"I'm sorry guys." I sigh as Laxus set me down on the bed. I turn away in shame "I couldn't even tie with him. I tried so damn hard."

"You couldn't honestly expect to beat a wizard saint, could ya?" Porlyusica asks gruffly as she prepares medicine for my wounds. I wince as she starts to dab a green liquid on the cuts.

"Don't worry (Y/n), it's fine." Laxus says "We're still beating Team A, and we have the rest of the competition to get our title back as the best."

I don't respond, and Porlyusica hands me a nasty smelling concoction to drink. I quickly down it, nearly gagging at the taste. It soothes my muscles but I know I'll be sore for a while. Honestly, I was lucky nothing was broken.

Despite insisting he wouldn't, Jura went easy on me. The realization stung worse than my wounds.

It's quiet for a few minutes while the healer works. We eventually hear voices shouting in the hall and the door opens up as the Thunder Legion comes barreling in.

"(Y/n) you were awesome out there!" Evergreen says, running up to me and hugging me. I cry out in pain and she quickly lets go "Sorry, I forgot!"

"Well done (Y/n)." Freed says and I roll my eyes, annoyed with all the praise.

"Whatever, I lost. There's nothing great about that."

Bickslow comes up to me and brushes my bangs from my face "Yeah, but you got more hits in on him than anyone could ever hope to."

Everyone nods in agreement and I sigh. The room was full of people who were proud of me and it made me feel loved, despite my frustration.

"Thanks guys."

"Alright that's enough! You humans stink, get out!" Porlyusica barks "You're free to go too child, just take it easy."

"Thanks Porly." I laugh, dodging her broom as we all shuffle quickly out the door. _Where did she even get a broom anyway?_

"We're all heading back to the inn if you guys want to tag along." Evergreen says as we begin walking out of the arena.

I move slowly due to my injuries, and so I insist that Mira and Gajeel go do their own thing. I didn't want them to feel like they had to walk with us.

"Sounds good. I'm gonna take a bath when I get there." I sigh "And probably just lay in bed the whole night."

"Awh, don't do that!" Bickslow pouts "Come spend time with us!"

His babies nuzzle carefully against me as they repeat the seith mage "Spend time with us!"

The feeling of the totems nuzzling me makes me giggle and I sigh, giving in to their request.

"Fine but I'm still taking a bath first. And you're bringing me my drinks!" I say, sticking my tongue out at Bickslow.

The Thunder Legion, Laxus and I all eventually arrive at the inn and I go up to my room to get my bath stuff. I spend a long time soaking under the hot water, hissing as it touches my cuts. The warmth feels amazing on my bruised skin and bones.

When I finally get out and get dressed, I can hear that everyone is talking excitedly down stairs. I sigh and make the slow walk down the steps. Bickslow comes running up to me when he sees me. He gently wraps his arms around my waist and hoists me to a nearby chair where everyone is sitting.

"You don't have to carry me around!" I mumble from my seat next to Evergreen. "You're just as bad as Laxus."

The seith mage grins, caressing my cheek "It's just how we are; we take care of those we care about."

I blush when I see Laxus watching our exchange from the other side of the table. He has a grin that matches Bickslow's.

"The idiot's right ya know."

The two of them are eerily agreeable, and it's so different to how they usually act. "Did I miss something?"

"Let's just say that when all of this is over, the two of us have a surprise for you." Bickslow says quietly, ignoring the questioning look I give him.

Neither Evergreen nor Freed were aware of what was happening, the two being deep in their own conversation. I was glad, knowing that Evergreen would be questioning the two men harshly on what their "surprise" was.

We sit for a while, everybody drinking and eating and discussing the games. I don't talk much, still trying to get over my loss. I noticed Gray and Lucy show up looking sore but determined and I nod in greeting to them. They had already moved on from their defeat, but it was not so easy for me. I had experienced so much pain and humiliation in games past, and it got harder every time.

"You okay?"

I glance over to see Laxus watching me and I shrug "I will be."

The dragon slayer frowns, his eyes searching for any hint of dishonesty. Before he can say anything, Makarov stands on a table once he see's everybody is here.

"Listen up you brats!" He begins, "Today's defeat is simply the seed for tomorrow's victory. Tomorrow, we begin our climb to the top! We will rise up, because we don't know the meaning of the word's 'Give up'! We are Fairy Tail, and we aim to be number one in Fiore!"

The guild goes crazy and begins to celebrate even more after Gramps' encouraging words. I laugh at the way it seems to motivate everyone, and I'm thankful to have him as a guild master. He always knew the right thing to say. I was used to Macao who would just sit at the bar, stewing over a mug of ale and chain smoking with Wakaba.

Soon I find myself smiling and joining in on the chaos that was my guild. Bickslow drags me into a drinking contest with Cana, and Evergreen ends up joining us too. It seemed like everybody was going all out tonight and I didn't want to be left out.

I know it will be impossible to beat the card mage, so I settle for simply beating Bickslow and Ever. I briefly wonder if this is a bad idea. However, I really needed to let loose and have fun. Maybe it was a bad way of coping, but getting drunk with friends never failed to make me feel better.

"Alright (Y/n), let's see just how much you can handle!" Cana says as she lays out shot glasses on the table.

"There's no way you'll be able to beat me!" Bickslow shouts arrogantly.

"We'll see about that!" I grin. I may have gotten super drunk and blacked out at the club, but I knew I had way more to drink that night than the seith mage. I was confident I could win this battle!

Evergreen sweat drops at our enthusiasm "Why did I agree to this?"

We quickly begin downing shots, and I match Cana and Bickslow every time. Evergreen ends up tapping out pretty quickly, and we continue without her. She was kind of a lightweight, and I was honestly surprised she joined us. The woman slumped over in her seat and promptly fell off. I giggled at her surprised expression before turning my attention back to the competition.

Bickslow was starting to slow way down, and soon I'm three shots ahead of him. He hiccups loudly, laughing when the noise scares the fairy mage sitting on the floor, slumped over her stool.

"Damn girl, you're giving Bickslow a run for his money!" Cana hoots, chugging ale before downing another shot. I feel the liquor hit me all at once and I stop, catching my breath. The card mage continues drinking steadily and I shake my head at her incredible tolerance.

"I give." Bickslow slurs, still three shots behind me. I down one more and call it quits.

"Yup, me too." I mutter as I sit down. The seith mage sits beside me, barely in his chair "Told you I could beat you Bixy!"

He groans, leaning heavily on me "How often do you drink Stormy, ya god damn alcoholic? "

"Oh shut up I don't drink that much!" I laugh as I push on his shoulder.

Bickslow responds to my shove with one of his own, and one which I'm completely unprepared for. I begin to fall off my chair, and desperately grab on to Bickslow's sleeve to stop my tumble. He laughs hysterically as he is forced to fall with me, since he'd been using me to keep himself upright.

He ends up on top of me, smothering me with his heavy clothes. His tongue hangs out of his mouth and I giggle from my spot underneath him. It feels nice being pinned beneath his body, and I don't even care that we're on the rough wood floor.

"Jeez, and I thought I was drunk!" Bickslow cackles, leaning heavily over me.

I blush brightly at our position, at the same time I start laughing at the ridiculousness of it. I look around to see Evergreen beside us, giggling drunkenly.

Freed calls for them suddenly, saying something about the Thunder Legion defending Laxus's honor. He gapes when he sees all three of us on the floor. I grin widely at him from underneath Bickslow, the room totally upside down and spinning.

"We can't..." Evergreen groaned, barely holding herself up. We were all too drunk to even think about getting up.

"Pathetic!" Cana laughs, slurring slightly and having had four more shots than me. She turns her attention to a dark haired man who has suddenly come up behind her. He challenges her to another drinking contest and Freed drags us back to our table.

"You guys are crazy!" He scolds as he sits us down "(Y/n) might have to compete tomorrow! How do you think she'll feel trying to fight hungover?"

"Ah get the stick out of your butt Freed-y." I giggle, slumped against the table "I doubt they'd make me battle after I got my ass handed to me today, and Gajeel already offered to do the chariot match!"

The rune mage sighs "You're too much like Bickslow."

The seith mage cackles, throwing his arm around me. I can't help but instantly lean into his embrace. I had been trying to keep my distance, but it was way easier during training. Lately I'd let both men closer than I had then. I wasn't sure what changed, but it felt nice.

However, I find myself thinking about when Laxus held me earlier. Both times, I felt like it was missing something, and my mind had wandered to the other man. Was this some stupid love triangle? _No, it's different._

I think hard about that, and my eyes widened when I realized it. I didn't prefer one over the other at all. Instead, it felt like our embrace was missing something. We'd been just two pieces, missing the third one that would complete the picture.

Laxus is looking at us, his expression blank until he notices my gaze. I thought he'd get annoyed seeing Bickslow all over me, but he looked simply concerned for my well being. The look makes me smile. I find myself wishing again that the two men would be willing to join me in a relationship. It was stupid to get my hopes up, but I couldn't ignore the feeling. My heart was completely torn in two, wondering if I really would have to pick between them.

* * *

 _A/N: Whew, preliminaries and the first day of the Grand Magic Games! We're gaining speed now, hope you're enjoying the ride -_

 _Favorite, Follow, Review :)_


	8. Chapter 8

_Stop making the eyes at me_

 _I'll stop making the eyes at you_

 _And what it is that surprises me_

 _Is that I don't really want you to_

* * *

The next day, I find myself watching the Chariot match, dumbfounded.

"Why did we all agree to let the dragon slayer's do the match called _Chariot_?" I groan. I can't believe I didn't catch that yesterday. Of course it would involve _transportation._

Mira, Laxus and Juvia all shrug, completely speechless. Gajeel struggled to move along the large wooden carts, and right beside him were Natsu and the blonde slayer Sting from Sabertooth. It was a pathetic sight to witness and I buried my face in my hands, unable to watch the fiasco. I knew Laxus also suffered from motion sickness, and he was looking pale just watching the three men straining.

The other guilds were all far, _far,_ ahead, running along as they battled for the top spots.

"Juvia is upset that Raven Tail is taking the lead." The water mage cried "Move it Gajeel!"

We cheered as the other guilds went all out, everyone using their own magic to their advantage. The dark haired man from last night (who I'd belatedly realized was Bacchus, the drunk falcon from Quatro Cerberus) was running behind everyone, falling over drunk. He sees everyone trying their hardest in the event and realizes he needs to get in gear. He uses his palm magic to stomp his foot down, the resulting shockwave destroying a few cars and throwing everyone ahead of him to lose their balance. I watch in shock as he effortlessly passes everyone and finishes in first. The other guilds follow behind him shortly afterward.

Meanwhile, the dragon slayers continue to struggle at the very rear of the parade of chariots.

"Damn, that metal head needs to get his shit together!" Laxus grumbles and I roll my eyes when I notice how he avoids looking directly at them.

"You're barely watching and you're getting nauseous."

He scowls at me, but the look dies quickly as another bought of sickness hits him. Mira giggles at our banter.

"You two are just the cutest!" She says, causing me to blush and quickly return my attention back to the match.

Natsu and Gajeel are both fighting to place before the others. Sting stands in last, not even bothering to try anymore.

"Why do you guys even care so much about winning?" He asks, watching as Gajeel and Natsu struggle. "Are you worried about your strength, or public image? The Fairy Tail I remember doesn't give a damn what anyone thinks of them, so why are you doing this?"

"It's for… our nakama."

My eyes go wide at Natsu's words. I listen intently as Natsu explains his reason for fighting so hard. He tells Sting about how they were doing it for all of us that were left behind for seven years. Tears spring to my eyes, along with all the other Fairy Tail members that I suffered alongside, as he explains the heartache we felt and how they were here to fix that. Gajeel grins widely, and I feel as though he's looking directly at me when the cameras show his face.

"The idiot's right, for once." Laxus mumbles.

"You guys..." I bite my lip, holding my hand over my guild mark on my chest. The two women on my team hug me and Laxus rests his large hand on my head. "Thank you."

The two Fairy Tail slayers continue moving down the path until finally stumbling into the arena and placing. We all cheer loudly, the crowd joining along for once. It seemed Natsu's speech had a powerful effect on everyone.

Well, almost everyone.

Sting seemed completely unaffected. He walks away, not even bothering to finish the race. The tournament judges inform every one of the scores, and we all greet Gajeel as he comes stomping into our private viewing area.

"Nice going." I tease, reaching out to poke him as he passes me.

"Ah shut yer trap!" Gajeel sneers as he pushes my hand away. He still looks slightly sick as he plops down in a chair and crosses his arms over his chest. However, he manages to grin at me, winking slyly. I chuckle, looking back at the arena as they begin announcing the upcoming battles. The first one would be Blacksnake from Raven Tail versus Toby from Lamia Scale.

Laxus pays close attention to the mage from Raven Tail as he torments the member of Lamia Scale. Not only were they targeting us, they were also being incredibly cruel to other guilds. I feel so bad for Laxus, having his evil father here must really bother him. I think all of us were feeling frustrated with Raven Tail's actions, and I couldn't wait for our chance to teach them a lesson. They could only get away with their bullshit for so long.

The battle leaves a bitter taste in our mouth as Bacchus, the man that beat Cana in a drinking contest, enters the arena for the second battle of the day. He's an incredibly strong opponent; I'd seen him a few times in previous games. It's been awhile since he competed, and I assume he wanted to get in on the action now that our core members were back. They announce that he will be fighting someone from Fairy Tail Team A, and I'm surprised when I hear Elfman's name.

"I feel like they pair us up to lose on purpose." I sigh, leaning dejectedly against the stone barrier.

"I know Elfman can win." Mira says "We trained really hard. Don't underestimate him!"

"Kick his ass Elfman!" Cana yells from beside Mira, and I turn in surprise.

"When did you get here?"

The drunken card mage shrugs, taking out a flask and drinking from it. "I snuck up here to get a better vantage point for the fight."

I laugh at her antics, and the fight begins. Bacchus says he would like to make a bet, and declares he will have both of the Strauss sisters together if he wins. Everyone trembles in disgust, making comments about it being a warped form of love to be with two women. I turn my face away in shame at those comments. It may just be because the two women are sisters, but I can't help wondering if everyone would react that way to _me_ being with two people.

 _They're right (Y/n), it's not normal to be with more than one person._

I glance at Laxus who looks annoyed at everyone's comments. I couldn't help but feel as though it was right for me though, that both Bickslow and Laxus were made for me. I try my best to ignore the remarks and focus on the match.

Elfman is quickly overpowered and I can't help sigh. This was another match that seemed to be going south and I hoped Elfman could pull through. Mira watched intently, her face dark and magic power swirling. I looked over to where Evergreen sat comforting Lisanna. The fairy mage looked confident in Elfman's ability and I smiled. _She's got it bad._

Much to everyone's surprise, the beast soul take-over mage manages to win. We all cheer loudly as the two competitors are escorted off the field and they announce the next battle. Our team will be participating, and we're told to prepare. As we leave our viewing area to wait for the next match in the tunnels, we are informed of an attempted kidnapping and attack from Raven Tail on our infirmary. They tell us that the Thunder Legion will be guarding the area in case they try anything else.

"Jeez, how low can he fucking get." Laxus growls under his breath. I assume he's talking about Ivan, and I glance at him worriedly as he grits his teeth.

Cana, having left before she could get caught, heads back to sit with the rest of the guild members. Mira is quickly led to the arena for her fight, which we were told will be against Jenny Realight from Blue Pegasus. I wave cheerfully to her as she leaves. We're all confident that Mira will win, and watch excitedly as the battle begins.

Before I realize what's happening, the two women are in the middle of a posing competition in bikinis. The crowd is going wild and all the men have hearts in their eyes. I can't help joining their excitement. Those two were gorgeous. It makes sense too, since Mira would rather avoid fighting if she didn't have to. They're trying all different poses, the judges eagerly voting on their favorite of the two.

"Hold it!" A feminine voice suddenly shouts over the crowd, and three members from Mermaid Heel jump down from the stands "We won't let these little girls outdo us! When it comes to strength and beauty, Mermaid Heel is number one!"

The three women from the all-female guild have also put on swimsuits of their own. The crowd gets even louder than before as Sherria and Sherry from Lamia Scale join too, spouting some bullshit about _love_.

"Seems like everyone is joining in on this." I mutter as I look towards my guild.

Mavis, our first master, forces all the other girls sitting in the Fairy Tail section to join. She goes over to the three girls on Team A and makes them compete too.

"Juvia looks the best in swim suits!" The water mage has suddenly changed into a bikini, and it perfectly matches her skin tone. "A woman in love must battle at a time like this!"

She runs out as we deadpan, and Laxus peeks over at me "You not going out there?"

I shake my head "No way!"

Before I know what's happening, bright light covers my body and Mavis is smiling at me "Now, now (Y/n), what better way to show off how much you've grown than joining this competition!"

The light fades away, and I look down to see myself in a tight (f/c) bikini. I blush as Mavis pouts, staring at my chest, grumbling about her own undeveloped body. She forces me out into the arena with all the other girls. I walk awkwardly over to stand next to Cana, and she hoots when I walk up.

"Damn (Y/n), no wonder Bickslow is always all over you!"

I can't help but remember all the times she's hooked up with him and I hope it's not going to cause problems with our friendship. Though, I have a feeling her eyes are set on a certain drunken falcon. Cana was not the jealous type anyway, and I had always admired her care-free way of thinking. She's smiling happily and I laugh.

"Yeah, I guess."

"Too bad he's not here to see this." Cana grins slyly as she looks around briefly. Her eyes suddenly stop and her grin widens even more. "Well well, Laxus sure looks happy."

I glance over to where he's standing, staring directly at me with his arms crossed. I realize that this is the least amount of clothes I've ever worn around him and the thought sends a ripple of excitement through me. Cana giggles, turning away and posing in a _wild_ direction.

 _How does she know so much?_ Laxus and I hardly ever interacted with each other and yet it seemed Cana could pick up on our budding relationship. I shake my head in exasperation at her keen nose for gossip.

With the resident drunk gone, I find myself looking back at Laxus. He's got a stupid smug grin and I feel the urge to wipe it off his stupid handsome face. I decide to try my best with the posing, determined to make Laxus squirm. If I'm going to be forced out here I might as well take advantage of it.

I bite my lip in the most seductive way I can, and I hope I don't look as stupid as I feel. The way the lightning mage reacts though gives me confidence. His cocky smirk disappears and he's looking at me in surprise. A blush settles on his cheeks when I push my breasts together and pout. I giggle when Gajeel teases Laxus, who sends a strong zap of lightning at the metal slayer in response.

Suddenly, someone wraps their arms from behind me and presses against my back. I turn to see Evergreen in a zebra striped bikini.

"Hey Sis!"

I turn around and hug the fairy mage "Awh, you're here!"

"Of course. I won't let everyone hog all the spot light!" She says, pulling away and striking a pose. I laugh as Laxus face palms, and look up to see Bickslow, Freed and Elfman in the stands above the tunnel my team is standing in.

"Who's guarding the infirmary?" I ask, trying to ignore the seith mage's pervy stare.

"Freed put up plenty of protection runes and if anybody even comes near that place, we'll know." She says "Now quit worrying and come have fun with me! Let's show them what true beauty is!"

She grabs me and drags me over to where everyone is changing. They have us put on school swimsuits and they fit tightly. Then, we're forced into bikinis again with thigh high socks.

"We rock this look!" Evergreen says as we stand there posing.

I wear thigh high socks often, so it wasn't anything out of the norm for me. Laxus and Bickslow blush when I bend over slightly, pointing my ass in their direction.

"This feels more embarrassing than just the swim suit!" Lucy pouts, looking down apprehensively at her pink and white string bikini and black stockings.

They announce the next outfit as girls with glasses and Evergreen laughs arrogantly.

"Nobody looks better in glasses than me!"

We're put in cat ears and tails next, and I glance over to see Bickslow fighting a nose bleed. I'm wearing a (f/c) cheetah print two piece with paws on my hand. I wink at him, sticking out my butt and meowing. He hoots in response, and I look down to Laxus and do the same thing. The dragon slayer simply rolled his eyes playfully, trying to fight a grin. I was really enjoying teasing those two. Evergreen soon focused on competing with her rival Erza, so I was content to focus on Laxus and Bickslow.

The next category is bondage, and I gasp excitedly. I was secretly extremely kinky, and I wondered how the two men would react to me wearing what would surely be a sinfully delicious outfit. Sure enough, I'm put into one of the skimpiest pieces of clothing I'd ever seen. I come out in a one piece bondage lingerie set that had black pieces of leather crossing my body in an intricate pattern. It barely covered my breasts and womanhood, and showed a lot of skin. Large heeled boots going up to my knees and a leather choker with a metal ring on it completed the look.

 _Can this even count as clothing?_

My face is bright red as I look in the mirror, and I'm suddenly losing my earlier confidence. I'm ready to go try something else on when Cana comes up behind me.

"Girl, that is the sexiest thing I've ever seen." She grins "Your men are going to die of blood loss when they see you in that!"

"My men..? Cana, wait-!"

Before I can stop her, she slings her arm over my shoulder and pulls me along with her. _I swear, she must have gotten that habit from Bickslow._ I'm forced out into the arena along with everyone else, and I feel almost shy for the first time. I'd never had so many people see me in such a tiny amount of clothing. I try to avoid anyone's gaze, but can't help looking towards Laxus and Bickslow again.

The two guys look speechless and I feel a surge in courage. It was easy to focus on them and ignore the excited buzz of the crowd and contestants. Their eyes go wide when I pout submissively, bending over as I pull on the silver ring connected to my choker.

"I would mind tasting that piece of metal." I hear Gajeel say.

Laxus hits him over the head and I giggle at his disgruntled expression. He probably hated that there were so many people witnessing this.

"I give!"

I look to my right at the sudden shout and see Evergreen bowing to Erza. The requip mage has a riding crop in her hand and looks like the sexiest female dom I'd ever seen. I can't help but giggle.

 _Nobody would ever beat Erza when it came to kinky stuff!_

The theme is suddenly changed to wedding dress and I grimace. This was a huge change from before, and I was definitely not going to tease anyone with it!

I'm put into a sleeveless princess style ball gown, and my hair is done in an elegant up-do. The dress is gorgeous and I can't help admiring the perfect fit despite my trepidation. They tell us to grab a partner and I groan. _Can they make it any worse?_ The men are all forced into suits and I hide next to Evergreen.

"This is embarrassing!"

"Out of all the themes, you find this one the worst?" She rolls her eyes, pushing me towards Laxus who is standing next to Freed. She walks off in the direction of Elfman, who is wearing a sleeveless tux and blushing. "Get out there sis!"

I nearly fall into Laxus, who turns towards me at the last second. His eyes go wide in surprise when a few objects stop me from falling into him. I look down to see Bickslow's totems, and the seith mage comes up to us wearing a dashing white tuxedo and a royal blue tie. His visor is off, and I admire his handsome face that he hardly ever showed. His mohawk was perfectly tamed and he smiled brightly at me, grabbing my hand and helping me stand straight.

"You look beautiful Stormy!" He grins at me and then looks up to Laxus, who is wearing a perfect fitting black tuxedo with a yellow tie "And you're not so bad yourself, boss!"

To my surprise, Laxus smirks at that, gently pulling at the collar of his suit jacket. "Yeah, I look good in suits."

I gape at the two of them while Freed looks confused. Since when did Laxus happily accept compliments from Bickslow?

"Did I miss something?" Freed asks me.

"Uh, I'm wondering the same thing..."

The two men simply chuckle. We're pulled out of our conversation when the old guild master from Lamia Scale declares she will take part in the next competition. We look over in horror when she jumps into the arena, her cloak falling away. She's wearing a swim suit and dancing wildly, and it instantly kills the mood.

Everyone walks away, quickly changing out of the clothing and going back to the stands. The two women _actually_ competing prepare for their final pose. They talk for a moment before deciding on a bet like the others competitors had. I stand next to my teammates and watch from the tunnels as they decide that the loser will pose naked in Sorcerer Weekly.

"I never thought I'd see the day where I wouldn't mind Fairy Tail losing…" I mutter, my face bright red at the thought of Mira naked.

They change into battle forms, and I know instantly that Mira will win. There was no way Jenny could face the she-demon and hope to triumph. Freed had been one to learn that the hard way, and when I look over at him I laugh in surprise. He was staring at her in awe, a light blush on his face. _I've never even seen him look at Laxus like that._ Apparently the rune mage had a thing for our resident barmaid.

Mirajane summons her most powerful form, Sitri, and Jenny freezes in shock. Vast amounts of magical energy flood the arena as Mira moves faster than my eyes could follow. Jenny is instantly knocked out by the younger mage. Our team receives 10 points and we all shout in excitement. Fairy Tail won again today! We were now matched with Team B at 12 points.

Juvia and I greet Mira with a hug as she walks back to us, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. She giggles "I wore so many immodest outfits!"

"Yeah, but the last one had the best impact." Gajeel said with a grin.

"You can say that again!"

We all went upstairs back to our designated seating, spirits soaring after our successful day. It was now time to watch the final battle between Kagura and the white haired mage from Sabertooth.

"This will be interesting" I mutter "Kagura is really strong, and I've never seen this other girl."

We watch in fascination as the two women face off, deciding to stake their lives on the match.

"Can they do that?" Juvia mutters questioningly.

The battle begins as the Sabertooth mage, Yukino, summons a celestial spirit. Kagura dodges when two giant eel-looking creatures attack her.

Everyone gasps in shock to see another Celestial Spirit mage like Lucy. I'd only ever heard of one other celestial mage, who had been part of the Oracion Seis. That woman had lost her keys after the guilds destroyed their plans and Lucy had her spirits now. Judging by the key ring Yukino held, she had the last of the zodiac keys. She summons two at once, and it seems like Kagura is finished when the Mermaid Heel mage is pinned to the ground from Libra's gravity magic. She surprises everyone though by breaking out of the gravity spell. She begins using her own gravity-altering magic, and Yukino's spirits disappear in gold light. The two women both stop attacking, taking a moment to face off.

Yukino pulls out a black key that she calls the 13th Gate, and a black ominous cloud fills the arena. Kagura charges, unfazed, and a large serpent is summoned from Yukino's key.

"Jeez, that thing is huge!" Gajeel gapes. I nod in agreement to his statement; the giant creature was extremely intimidating. It took up nearly the entire arena and more.

It suddenly moves to attack Kagura, who quickly strikes back. We all gasp in surprise when she hits the beast with the sheathed sword on her hip. Did she really not even need the blade to attack her opponents? The spirit is instantly defeated, disappearing in a burst of black light. Kagura looks at the stunned celestial wizard, and rushes towards her. Yukino is still in shock and the Mermaid Hell mage strikes at her. Yukino falls to the ground, unable to get up.

The arena is silent when Kagura is announced as the winner. That breaks the spell, and soon everyone is cheering, including me. It was nice to see a Sabertooth mage get their ass kicked! Their guild ended up with zero points for the day and although it sucks to see Raven Tail in first, I was sure we had a fighting chance after today.

We walked back to the inn, talking excitedly about the day's events. Cana invites me to drink with her again but I decline. Instead, I decided to visit the Thunder Legion to see how their guard duty is going. First though, I wanted to change into something more casual. I walk into the room I'm sharing with my team, and grab some comfy shorts and a t-shirt to change into. Laxus walks in as I finish getting dressed and I smile at him.

"Hey, I was just about to go see the Thunder Legion, did you…" I stop my sentence when I see the predatory glint in his eyes. "What?"

"You sure were a tease today, you know that?" He growls with a smirk on his face. "What happened to focusing on the games, hmm?"

I blush, looking away as he stalked closer to me. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Mhm, sure." Laxus grabs my arm gently and pulls me into his broad chest. "I'm trying to behave myself, but you're really making it difficult."

His face is so close to mine, and I lick my lips as I stare up into his stormy grey eyes. I'd never known him to be so straightforward. Had all my teasing brought this side of him out? Laxus chuckles at my dazed expression, pulling back. I blink up at him, slightly confused by his actions. He had completely caught me off guard and I had no idea what to say.

"Look, I'm coming with you to visit the Thunder Legion and you, me, and Bickslow need to talk, alright?" Laxus says, his demeanor now much more serious.

"What's going on?" I ask "You and Bicks are acting odd. Did something happen?"

"Something did happen." He responds "But it's something good, I promise."

"Okay..." I say skeptically, watching the lightning mage as he grabs his coat. He motions for me to take the lead and I do. We walk out of the inn and into the warm night air. We slowly to the arena, admiring the bustling capital city. Eventually we reach the arena and begin walking down the hall towards our infirmary. I see Bickslow standing guard at the door. He's leaning against the wall, seemingly in conversation with his totems. When he sees us coming towards him he stops and grins excitedly.

"Hey guys!" He says, moving off the wall and greeting me with a hug "You sure were amazing today (Y/n)."

"I didn't even compete." I laugh as he pulls back.

"Yeah, but you would have won that modelling contest if you were!" He winks, sticking his large tongue out at me.

"Where are the other two?" Laxus asks. Bickslow sees the solemn look on his face and frowns.

"They're inside. It's my turn to keep watch, so they're getting some rest." Bickslow says.

Laxus opens the door to the infirmary and we walk in. I giggle when I see Evergreen lying next to Elfman, asleep. He was reallybeat up after his fight today and I'm sure she's worried about him. Freed is on one of the beds reading and he looks up as Laxus walks over to him. The lightning mage whispers something to Freed, who nods and stands.

"Bickslow, come with us real quick. Freed will keep watch for you." Laxus says, and I can only follow along silently, wondering what the hell Laxus was planning.

We leave the room, Freed taking up position at the door. He watches us intently as we walk away. Bickslow tells his babies to stay with them at the infirmary and he follows behind me, alone. Laxus leads us out onto the street, walking leisurely for a while before we reach a small little fountain area with benches.

"Man, I never get tired of the capital. This place is always so beautiful." I smile, spinning around and looking at all the colorful flowers. Light lacrimas lit up the water, making it appear a bright blue. There were lamp lacrimas all around the place, lighting up the benches and creating a pleasant atmosphere. I stop my spinning and sit, looking up at the two men. They're both watching me and I blush "What?"

"You're cute." Bickslow chuckled as he sat beside me on the bench.

"Alright so what's all this about Sparky?" I ask, ignoring the seith mage's comment and turning to Laxus who sits on my right "Why'd you bring us here?"

"Well, we should probably start by asking what you remember from the other night." He says. I suddenly feel anxious.

"You mean at the club?" I ask slowly, and he nods. I glance at Bickslow and see the eager look on his face. "I blacked out after that shot Bicks got from the waitress, why?"

"Something happened that night that you should know about." Laxus says, and I immediately panic.

"Oh god, I knew I did something embarrassing!" I cry, hiding my face in my hands "Please tell me it wasn't that bad!"

"Calm down Stormy before you cause a rain storm!" Bickslow says, grabbing my arms and pulling my hands away from my face "It's not bad. It's actually really, really amazing."

I look at him questioningly. I'd thought Laxus had been planning something, but it seemed like Bickslow knew exactly what was going on. I find myself frantically wondering what the hell was about to happen.

Laxus sighs, turning my attention back towards him. "Bicks and I got in an argument that night, and it made us realize something..."

He trails off and looks to Bickslow for help, not being the best at expressing himself. The seith mage quickly takes over "We both fell hard for you Stormy. And we've decided we don't want to make you choose only one of us. We agreed that we'd all be happiest if we could have a polyamorous relationship involving all three of us. I know it sounds crazy, but honestly, you are so important to me. Laxus is too. I can't think of anyone I'd enjoying spend my time with more than you two."

I gape at him in shock. How is it that these two would not only be willing to be in a polyamorous relationship, but they'd also be the ones offering? All this time I'd been blowing it off as some silly fantasy. But it was _real_ , this was actually happening. I thought if it were to happen I would have to ask, and I wasn't even going to bother. I never believed that Laxus would agree. The seith mage was open to anything, but Laxus seemed pretty old school. I look at the lightning mage who has a serious look on his face. "Is that what you want Laxus?"

He stares down at me, taking a moment to think "At first, I thought it was a stupid idea. I was willing to fight to win you over, but Bickslow showed me that he cares about you just as much as I do. So, I think this is the best solution. It may be awkward at first, but we're great friends. And I guess deep down, I don't mind being with you and Bicks. It's a chance to grow my relationship with you and a man who has been my best friend for so long."

Laxus looks up at Bickslow, who is grinning happily "You're just an awesome guy, boss."

We all laugh, feeling like a huge weight has been lifted. I was so unbelievably happy. I knew this relationship would take a lot of work and communication but it was going to be so worth it. "This is so incredible. I really like both of you so much. I kept telling myself there was no way you two would ever be okay with non-monogamy… And I really didn't want to have to make a decision and hurt one of you.. But now I don't need to worry about any of that!"

"Well, in any situation like this, we'll need to set up some rules." Bickslow said "And we need to know what we all hope to experience with this relationship."

"What do you mean?" Laxus asked.

"Well…" The seith mage grinned, addressing the other man"For starters, are you and I going to be together too, or will it just be each of us with (Y/n)?"

"You mean like are you two going to be dating?"

"It's a bit more than that, but yes." Bickslow says in response to my question "With it being a relationship between all three of us, we can also do sexual things with or without you. We don't really need permission to sleep with each other. If it were just both of us with you, we wouldn't interact unless you approved it."

Laxus is quiet for a while, and we both look at him waiting for his response "I've never been with a man…"

"But you have experimented." Bickslow responds and I gape at him in shock. He grins at my surprised expression. "Yup, _we_ have actually kissed a few times, among _other_ things."

I look back to my right to see Laxus blushing and he pouts "I was drunk."

"The first time, maybe, but not after that." Bickslow grins smugly, his tongue hanging from his lips.

Laxus crosses his arms and looks away from the seith mage. He sees my questioning gaze and sighs "I wouldn't ever really be into it with someone else, but it's different with Bicks. He's the only guy I've ever been attracted to. But it's your choice on what you want us to do (Y/n)."

I bite my lip, blushing at the image of the two men naked together "I'm fine with either."

Bickslow sticks his tongue out provocatively "You're getting turned out at the thought of us huh? You dirty girl."

"Shut up." I pout "It would be hot. And I don't really mind if you guys want to go on dates and stuff without me too, by the way. I never really get jealous, and I trust you both."

"At the end of the day, we're doing this because we want you to be happy." Laxus says "If you ever feel like it's too much or not enough, let us know. This is for you."

This was more than I could have ever hoped for, and I felt eager so see what the future had in store for the three of us. "Thank you, really. You guys are so amazing."

They laugh, and we all stand up and hug. I briefly remember this feeling from that night I blacked out, and I sigh in contentment.

"So now the question is, do you still want us to wait until after the games?" Laxus asks as we part.

"I don't know." I respond, thinking hard about his question "I wanted to wait before because I was confused, and didn't want to worry about distractions or hurting anyone. But now that we've come to a conclusion, I feel like it won't be a distraction anymore. It'd be nice to have you guys there to support me as my boyfriends."

"Then we're really doing this?" Bickslow says, grinning widely. We all look to each other for any signs of doubt. Not finding any, he continues "Alright, it's settled. Now, about those outfits today…"

He waggles his tongue at me and I bite my lip "Maybe another time. Right now, I want to start with this…"

I wink at the seith mage and giggle. Then, I turn to Laxus and grab the back of his neck to pull him closer. I'd only gotten to kiss him one time, and I'd been so surprised I'd barely done anything! This time, I wanted Laxus to know just how much I liked him. His eyes go wide in shock when I kiss him fiercely. He's still for a moment before he growls, his eyes closing and he pulls me close. We kiss, a hungry desperate kiss conveying all the frustration from being unable to do anything for so long. I feel my chin being tugged after a moment, and Laxus pulls away.

Bickslow turns my face towards him and he places his lips against my own while Laxus begins to softly kiss my neck. I moan into Bickslow's mouth and he slides his tongue in to wrestle with mine. Both men are pressed up against me and I can't help but feel extremely turned on. This was an intoxicating feeling, having two bodies moving against my own. I start to run my hands over Bickslow's heavily armored chest and I press my backside harder against Laxus. We're caught up in each other when suddenly we hear voices coming down the pathway. We break apart, panting heavily.

"We should probably stop there." Laxus mumbles, trying discreetly to hide the bulge in his jeans.

I giggle breathlessly, trying to calm down. "Yeah, probably."

"Let's head back before Freed throws a fit." Bickslow says. We start walking and I'm suddenly feeling nervous. Now that we had reached a decision, I wondered how the guild would react.

"What are we gonna tell everyone?" I ask quietly. "I doubt anyone will approve."

"Eh, who cares?" Bickslow says, grabbing my hand and holding it as we walk "All I know is that this is what makes us happy. Our nakama will understand."

"You think so?" I wonder.

We look to Laxus who shrugs as he grabs a hold of my other hand. "Of course. It doesn't matter what anyone says anyway. You two belong to me and everyone needs to know that."

I laugh at the dragon slayers possessive growl and Bickslow coos "Awh, boss, that's so sweet."

Laxus rolls his eyes at the seith mage and I sigh in bliss. I had never felt more content than I did at this moment. Things in my life were finally looking up. I had my family back, we were starting to make a comeback in the games, and now I had two amazing boyfriends who cared for me more than anybody had before. There was nothing that could bring me down.

Or so I thought...

* * *

 _A/N: AAAHHH foreshadowinggg o.o_

 _And they're finally together! Yay. I wrote this story and I'm still fan-girling. Who's surprised it happened so soon? There was just no way I could wait till after the games xD Hope you enjoyed this chapter! It was so fun to write!_


	9. Chapter 9

_I know your soul is not tainted_

 _Even though you've been told so_

 _I can feel the thunder that's breaking in your heart_

 _I can see through the scars inside you_

* * *

The third day begins with the Pandemonium event. We all gathered at the Domas Flau early in the morning. Nobody knew about my new relationship yet, and I was pretty nervous. I wanted to tell Evergreen first, but she'd still been asleep when we got back. So, the three of us had decided to wait and tell everyone together. I got to spend a little bit of time this morning with the two men before Laxus and I had to part ways with Bickslow. I stayed close to Laxus as we made our way to our sitting area with the rest of our team. It was hard being near him and not giving away anything.

I briefly glance over at him as the announcers began talking and can't help but smile. He winks discreetly back when he sees me looking at him and I giggle, turning away. I was just so happy I couldn't hide it. I realized I didn't hear the usual excited squealing when Laxus and I interacted, so I looked around. It was then that I noticed Cana had once again joined our box, and that Mira was gone. I asked Cana about it, and the card mage informed me that Mira had decided to sit out, not wanting to join in on any more fights. Cana had been eager to compete, and she volunteered for the beginning game Pandemonium. Of course, not without some bickering from Gajeel first. Eventually he gave in, and Cana went to join the other volunteers.

They line the competitors up in the field and a dark purple magic circle appears overhead. An enormous upside-down building emerges, and Mato begins to explain to everyone the rules of the event. They draw straws to see what order they'll go in. Cana draws one with the number 8, and Erza ends up as the first one up. She immediately declares that she will challenge all 100 monsters.

Her declaration shocks everyone, except for those of us who knew just how much of a monster Erza herself was. I grinned, and we all watched, both amazed and amused, as Erza defeated every last beast. I was so glad to see their trip to the Celestial Spirit World hadn't put her behind at all. Her battle honestly felt as though it helped changed the tide of the games. Hope dared to blossom brightly in my chest that we truly would win the games this year. After that amazing feat, how could we not?

Since there was no monsters left for the others, the curators had to resort to something else. They decided to use the Magic Power Finder machine to decide who would place behind her. It was based on the amount of magic power everyone held, and I hoped Cana would score well. I knew she was a strong card mage, but wasn't sure how her magic compared to powerhouses like Jura and Orga.

She's the last one to go up and we watch, tense with anticipation. To our surprise, her arm begins to glow a warm yellow color and she breaks the machine as she shouts the spell "Fairy Glitter". I recognize the name from all the stories I'd heard about what happened at Tenrou Island. It was a spell Mavis had let her use.

We all look over at the small woman who sat next to Makarov, looking far too self-satisfied. I couldn't help laughing, along with everyone else. Mavis was determined to see us win this year, and was doing as much as she could to help. Fairy Tail ends up winning first and second for the first part of the day, and they let us all take a break before the battles begin. Cana comes running back to our area and I hug her excitedly.

"That was awesome!" I say as we pull away from each other.

"Nice job, I guess." Gajeel grumbles, feeling a bit less upset about not getting to go up than he had been earlier. He wouldn't have gotten to do any fighting, so he wasn't missing out on much.

"Thanks, but I couldn't have done it without Mavis." Cana grins "She's saved my ass twice now by letting me use that spell."

Our team stands around and talks for a bit longer before the announcers tell us all about the first match. I'm not too interested in any of them, and simply watch quietly for the first two matches, Mermaid Heel vs Quatro _Puppy_ (That name still makes me giggle, I'm so glad Elfman won that fight) and after that it's Sabertooth vs Blue Pegasus. Before I know it, Laxus's name is called for the third fight. He's put against Alexei from Raven Tail, and I feel my stomach drop.

"Why would they do that?" I frown, clenching my fist against my chest as I glance at Laxus. His expression is serious as he stares across the arena at his father's team.

"Those fuckers better not try anything." Gajeel growls.

"This is Laxus we're talking about!" Cana laughs "He'll do fine."

Laxus silently leaves the box to go down to the arena, and I quickly follow. He says nothing as I fall in step beside him. His face shows almost no emotion, and meanwhile my heart is pounding wildly. I was afraid of what they would do to him. If the way they treated everyone else was cruel, surely they'd be planning worse for Laxus.

We enter the tunnel leading to the field, and I frown as he stops. He doesn't even look my way as he stares fiercely at the entrance to the arena. I watch his back for a moment, tempted to reach out and comfort him. However, my hand drops as I suddenly feel as though I'm intruding. Laxus probably didn't want me distracting him while he prepared for his fight. _Why did I even follow him all this way? If he wanted me here he would've said something by now..._

Feeling foolish, I square my shoulders and turn to leave. I glance back for a moment and softly wish him good luck.

"Don't worry so much (Y/n)." He mumbles, and I stop to look at him in surprise. He looks back at me and smirks as he continues, "I told you we'd win, didn't I? I'll do whatever it takes to make sure that happens, so relax. Trust me."

My eyes go wide at his abrupt declaration. His grin makes my heart skip a beat and I catch my breath. "Laxus…"

"Go on back." Laxus said, turning back towards the arena "I'm gonna take care of this once and for all."

He continues walking, and I stare at his back for a moment, completely speechless.

After a moment I begin to head back to the the viewing box. I notice Cana eyeing me as I return, but ignore her gaze. The fight was about to begin and I didn't want to miss a single second. The two mages face off in the center and I lean against the wall, watching intently. The crowd is going wild and I bite my lip anxiously. Anything could happen at this point. Warren informs us through his telepathy that they've set up lookout teams. He and Makarov communicate with them through the telepathic connection and I sigh in relief when I hear everyone's keeping a close eye on the match. Mira and Lisanna joined the Thunder Legion to watch Raven Tail, while Bisca kept her scopes out on Ivan. If they did try anything shady, we'd definitely see it.

With that, the fight began. The two competitors walk towards each other, and Alexie quickly strikes Laxus when he gets close. I shout in a mixture of shock and rage as everyone gasps. Laxus was completely caught off guard and doesn't even have the chance to retaliate. The cloaked figure continues attacking Laxus and I feel myself getting frustrated. This was totally unlike Laxus! It couldn't be possible that someone could get that many hits on him. Laxus was way too fast for that.

"There's no way." I mutter, gritting my teeth. I watch closely for any signs of foul play and can't see any. I feel tears come to my eyes as I watch the blonde man getting beaten, and I desperately shout "Laxus, come on! You're better than this!"

Suddenly, he begins to fight back, pummeling Alexei. Lightning sparks off his body and I frown. It didn't feel anything like his magic usually did. Everyone shouts excitedly at the change of events, but I continue watching the fight closely. Something was wrong. Laxus was using his lightning as he punched the Raven Tail mage, but I couldn't feel his magic power changing the way it usually did. I had studied him often when he fought, so I knew something was different. It seemed nobody else noticed however.

"What the fuck." I curse softly as Laxus uses a large lightning attack that didn't seem to affect Alexei at all. The Raven Tail member quickly retaliates, repeatedly attacking a defenseless Laxus. After awhile it seems like all is lost. Laxus lies on the ground after being hit hard, but suddenly I feel the charge of Laxus's actual lightning. It's completely out of sync with the fight and I realize Raven Tail must be tampering with the match somehow. I look at their team and at Ivan but don't see any changes. In fact, they haven't moved a muscle. "They're completely still…"

I lean over the railing, loudly shouting in hopes that the man I had finally accepted my feelings for could hear me "Laxus!"

I hold out my thumb and forefinger out in our guild symbol, and at the same time I hear Gramps shout. I look and see that he's doing it too. _He must have realized something was up as well._ Makarov looks over at me, grinning widely. I wink at him and laugh. Of course that old man would be able to figure out that something was happening down there. This was his grandson after all, he knew Laxus better than anyone. We all watch intently as the two men continue to fight until suddenly, I feel an incredibly surge in magic power and the scene on the battlefield changes.

The whole arena gasps in shock as Laxus stands in a fighting stance with the entire Raven Tail guild lying beaten around him. I see that his father has been punched into the wall, unconscious. That bastard must have put up an illusion spell or something so he could have his entire team attack Laxus. I wasn't sure why he would do something so terrible to his own son. Then again, knowing everything else he's done, it wasn't surprising.

The guards move quickly after everyone realizes what had happened. Raven Tail is arrested and kicked out, and Laxus walks calmly out of the stadium. His father says something to him as he leaves, but I can't hear what they're saying. I run out of the box to greet the man who was now my boyfriend. There was no telling how he felt after that fight and if he'd even want to see me, but I was worried. Eventually I find Laxus in one of the tunnels, leaning against the wall with his eyes closed. I stop, suddenly feeling nervous. He doesn't move as I watch him, but I know he is aware of my presence.

"You don't have to act so nervous with me." Laxus mumbles, not moving. I walk closer to him, frowning.

"I just wasn't sure if you'd want me bothering you after what happened..."

"Didn't I tell you not to worry so much?" He chuckles, opening his scarred eye to look at me "You're never a bother (Y/n). And hey, I won. You should be excited."

I walk the rest of the way up to him and bury my face in his chest. All the tension leaves me at once and I feel relieved. He wraps his arms around me and I'm enveloped in his coat "I can't help but worry. Are you okay? What did they do?"

He brushes hair from my face and I look up at him. "My father wanted some info on Gramps and our guild. When I told them I didn't know, they were expecting to beat it out of me. Unfortunately for them, I had you guys there to spur me on. I had to get revenge for my family."

I smile softly at him and he kisses me gently. We pull quickly when we hear the Thunder Legion come running down the hall. They all look excited and Bickslow gives Laxus a bear hug when he reaches us first. The other two join in on the dog pile and I giggle as I see Laxus reluctantly hug them back.

"You guys didn't really think I was gonna loose did you?" He asks as they part, crossing his arms and grinning at the three mages.

"I never doubted you for one second Laxus!" Freed shouts fervently. The other two roll their eyes at their team's leader.

"I can't believe those bastards would try something like that." Evergreen growls "We ought to give them a second beating."

"Relax, I'm sure they'll be regretting their actions for a long ass time." Bickslow says, throwing his arm around Laxus like he often did to me. The sight makes me grin happily. The dragon slayer doesn't push him away like he usually does and Evergreen and Freed gape at them in shock.

"Okay what the hell is up with you two?" Evergreen asks, putting her hands on her hips "You guys have been acting weird around each other ever since that night at the club."

I decide that now would be the best time to tell these two about our relationship, since we were finally all together. I clear my throat and smile when everyone directs their attention at me "That's actually something I wanted to talk about. Sis, you know how I told you about my dilemma?"

She nods, raising one eyebrow expectantly "You mean about liking those two idiots?"

I nod and look at Freed "I'm sorry we've kept this from you, but when you guys first came back, I started falling for Bickslow. And then I found myself experiencing feelings again for Laxus as well…"

Freed nods "Although I was unaware of your own feelings, I knew all about those two being interested in you."

I glance over at my boyfriends. Bickslow shrugs "I didn't exactly hide it."

I look to Laxus who is... blushing? He coughs, looking away with a frown "I may have confided in Freed about how I felt…"

"I am Laxus's best friend after all, (Y/n)." Freed grins "Of course he would tell me everything."

"So what, they're being nice to each other because you guys are in a love triangle?" Evergreen asks, looking for an explanation.

"Not really." I say, taking a deep breath to prepare for the next part "They're being nice because we've decided to be in a three-way relationship… We agreed to it last night and wanted to tell you guys first before we told the guild."

It goes silent as Freed and Ever stare at me and the two men. I bite my lip nervously, waiting for their response.

"(Y/n), is that really what you want?" The woman I consider my sister asks me slowly, and my heart drops. If she didn't approve, I doubted anyone else would be okay with it too. "I mean, that just doesn't really seem practical."

I frown "Why wouldn't I want this? I told you how I felt about them both, and that I didn't want to hurt anyone by choosing. This way, we're all happy. Bickslow and Laxus really care for each other, as well as me."

"Wait, so are you two gay or something?" She asks suddenly, looking at the two men.

"No." Laxus shrugs "Not really."

"I would have known if Laxus was gay." Freed says.

Bickslow laughs, sticking his tongue out "Right, let me explain. What we're trying to say is that the three of us are in polyamorous relationship that revolves around (Y/n). Laxus and I won't specifically be doing things without her, but when we're all together we do whatever we enjoy. Whether those things are gay or not is irrelevant."

Laxus and I nod and Evergreen simply stares silently at us.

"Well, if this is what makes you guys happy then I'm willing to accept it." Freed says, and I'm somewhat surprised that he's so calm about it. I had expected him to be upset "You three deserve to find love after everything you've been through."

His words bring tears to my eyes and I hug him "Thank you Freed."

He hugs me back and glares at Bickslow "If you hurt her you're in trouble."

The seith mage pales "Why me and not Laxus too?!"

"Because Laxus is a perfect gentleman and would never break a woman's heart." Freed sighs with a large smile on his face.

I giggle, and look up to see Laxus staring off into the distance, looking lost in thought. He notices me staring and puts his arms around my shoulder, hugging me to his side. I lean into him and see the way everyone is watching our interaction. It makes me feel a bit self conscious, but not enough to pull away. I wanted to be close to my boyfriend, especially after what he just had to deal with.

After a moment, Evergreen sighs "Well, I guess if anyone is gonna be with my little sister, I'm glad it's you two."

"You know I'm technically older than you now, right?" I tease and she rolls hers eyes playfully.

"Ah shut it." She laughs, and we all stand around and talk for a while before people start filling the empty hall, everyone leaving the arena for the day.

The Thunder Legion goes back to their guard duty at the infirmary and Laxus walks me back to the Honeybone Inn. We decide not to tell everyone about our relationship until Bickslow was there too, so we keep to ourselves as we hang out with our guild. Eventually Laxus leaves to talk to Gramps and I'm left to mingle with my nakama. I go sit with Gajeel, Levy and Wendy. Levy is immersed in a book while Gajeel munches away on some iron. I start talking to the young sky dragon slayer for a while until Natsu knocks into our table, sending it flying.

"Natsu!" I pout as Wendy and I fall to the ground. He had been using a barrel of alcohol to surf across the room and lost control when he careened into our table. I shake my head in exasperation.

The iron dragon slayer grabs the younger boy and yells at him as Levy helps us stand up. "You could have hurt someone, flame-brain!"

"Ha ha, sorry about that guys!" He grins sheepishly, stepping back as Gajeel lets him go.

Gray comes up to Natsu and pushes him over before jumping up onto the barrels Natsu was using. He begins surfing towards the other side of the room, laughing loudly. Natsu stands up, shooting fire out of his mouth and yelling "You're gonna pay for that ice-dick!"

I roll my eyes and laugh at the two rivals as they start fighting when Natsu tackles Gray off the board. Soon, a bunch of people join in on the beer-barrel surfing. Cana complains loudly about how they're abusing the alcohol and quickly snatches up the barrels. I'm amazed that she has the strength to carry around the heavy containers. Then again, she was always chugging straight from the barrel.

The surfing haven been interrupted, the guild went back to talking and drinking merrily. I sat back down with Levy and some of the other girls joined us. It was so nice to have some time to talk with all of them. I hadn't had much time to catch up with everyone after they returned. Between training and the games, we'd all been busy. It was a bit odd knowing I was older than most of the girls now. We start talking about how beautiful Crocus is, and Levy mentions that there's a nearby water park that is indoors.

"That sounds like so much fun!" Lucy squeals.

"It's a great summer park that's super popular here!" Levy informs us. "I was thinking we could all go. Since it's indoors, they stay open pretty late."

Gray and Natsu, having overheard the conversation, shout excitedly that they would like to go too. Before I know it, the entire guild has decided to join and we all change into our swim suits. Thankfully, I came prepared for anything. You never knew when you'd need to wear a swimsuit for the competition. I put on a black two piece bikini that had little (f/c) clouds on it, and I slip on some flip flops before heading downstairs. I walk out of the inn and join Cana, who is standing there in her bra and underwear. We walk together to the water park and I giggle at all the strange looks she's getting.

"I wish I'd brought my swim suit." She pouts.

"You could have borrowed one from me ya know." I giggle, looking at her surprisingly girly undergarments. "I always pack extra."

"Eh, it's not like this is much different anyway." She shrugs, pulling out a flask from her cleavage. I gape at her, wondering where she has room for those things.

We finally reach the water park and it's still busy despite being late at night. The place is huge and there are tons of different water slides and pools. Everyone runs off in different directions, excited to explore the park. I follow Cana as she heads straight to the bar and orders us both a tall fruity drink.

"So, I couldn't help noticing that you seemed pretty concerned about Laxus this morning, (Y/n)." Cana says, leaning against the bar with her drink as she grins at me slyly "What's all that about?"

I can't help but grin, looking down at my glass and blushing when I start thinking about Laxus "Well, can you blame me? He was going up against his shitty father's team. There's no telling what could have happened."

"It was more than that." She insists, leaning closer to me "C'mon girl, you can't hide anything from me."

"Well..." I stir my drink before drinking half of it, and with a happy sigh I tell her "We're actually in a relationship. But we haven't really told anyone because of timing and, well… it's not exactly normal."

"Normal how?" She asks.

"We're in a polyamorous relationship with Bicks…" I mutter quietly.

"Wow, I could see Bickslow doing that, but I never thought you'd be into that and definitely not Laxus, too!" She laughs "How's that working?"

"Well, first of all you have to promise me you won't tell anyone." She nods and I continue "I really like them both." I begin, smiling when I think about my boyfriends "They're both so incredible, and I couldn't imagine my life without either of them. They agreed to this relationship because it's what will make us all happy. Bickslow and Laxus get along well, being as close as they are. And apparently they have a bit of history together, so that makes things easier. It's just the beginning and it's gonna take work, but I couldn't be happier."

She watches me, smiling softly. Her earlier teasing is gone as she responds "I'm glad. I heard all about what you did for the guild while we were gone. You deserve to find someone to spoil you, and what better than two sexy men!"

I giggle, noticing once again that similar phrase. That I 'deserved to find happiness' or whatever. I wasn't sure if that was entirely true after everything was said and done, but it was nice to experience after all this time. Cana and I continue to sit and drink for a bit before we decide to go get in the water. The two of us grab inner tubes and lay in them while we float along in the pools. We let the water take us where it wants while we talk. The current takes us into a particularly noisy section where some people are shouting loudly.

"Wild!"

"FOUR!"

I cringe when I hear the call of the men from Quatro Puppy. Cana instantly lights up, and I giggle at her expression."Go get 'em girl!"

She gets out of her inner tube and swims over to the group of guys, instantly joining in. I decide to get out of the pool, and take my inner tube back to the shack where they kept them. As I leave, out of the corner of my eye I notice Evergreen sneaking behind a rock. White spikey hair peeks out at the top of the rock, and I giggle when I realize she's sneaking around with Elfman. She tries so hard to hide her affection for the Strauss brother, but nothing was secret for long around here. As I walk away, I wonder if the rest of the Thunder Legion was here too. It'd be nice to spend time with Bickslow. I've barely gotten to see him since he had to take up guard duty at the infirmary.

"(Y/n)! Come join the party!"

I'm lost in my thoughts when I hear a feminine voice calling me, and look over to see Mavis splashing around with a grumpy looking Makarov and Laxus sitting on the edge of the pool. The lightning slayer looks up when he hears Mavis call my name and I walk over to them. I suddenly feel shy when I see Laxus checking me out, and I hope nobody notices my blush.

"What brings you guys here?" I ask when I finally reach the group.

"Master Mavis was upset, so we brought her here to cheer her up." Gramps mumbles.

I laugh at their expressions, and turn to Mavis. "You look like you're having fun first master!"

"I sure am!" She says, smiling happily. Suddenly, she stops and stands up, frowning "Oh no, I almost forgot to warm up first! You all need to join me! We can't swim if we're not properly prepared."

The small woman gets out of the pool, grabbing my arm and encouraging me to stretch with her. Gramps reluctantly joins, following along as Mavis leads the warm up. Laxus rolls his eyes, looking away.

"I'm good."

"Do as she says Laxus!" Makarov yells, and I giggle when Laxus sighs loudly and stands up to follow our stretches unenthusiastically.

"Mind if we join?" I hear a voice call as I'm bent over, touching my toes. I look between my legs and see an upside down Bickslow and Freed. My boyfriend is wearing a pair of sexy blue swim trunks and has a pervy grin on his face, staring directly at my ass. I stand up with a blush, continuing to follow along as Mavis leads us in a different stretch. The two men join us, Bickslow standing extremely close to me. Laxus still looks miserable and we laugh at his expression.

Mavis finally decides she's fully prepared and goes back into the pool. Makarov walks back to his seat on the edge of the pool and sips from a large mug of ale while he keeps an eye on her. Freed sits next to him and I turn to look at my two boyfriends.

"I'm so glad you guys are here." I smile, resisting the urge to hug them. They're both wearing only swim trunks and I can't help admiring their strong chests and arms.

"I'm glad I get to see you in a bikini again." Bickslow grins, pulling me towards him. I blush and look around, hoping nobody sees the public display of affection.

"We still haven't told the guild about us." I mutter as I pull back. "We probably shouldn't be all over each other here."

"But you're my girlfriend and I want to hold you." Bickslow pouts. "How about we go somewhere secluded and spend some time together?"

We agree, and we walk together to a quiet sitting area that's blocked off from the rest of the crowds. There's nobody here and I'm glad to find a private place. As soon as the three of us stop walking, Bickslow pulls me in for a kiss and I eagerly respond.

"Have some control ya pervert." Laxus grunts.

"You can't deny that you're fighting not to pounce on her too." The seith mage counters as he pulls away, and I yelp when he smacks my ass.

"Stop it Bicks." I pout, feeling teased. It was hard for me to resist pouncing the two, having them half naked in front of me.

"You do look good enough to eat." Laxus says as he pulls me against his chest, and the way he grins has me shuddering. I see the sharp point of his canines and wonder how they'd feel scraping against my skin.

"Does dirty talk turn you on (Y/n)?" Bickslow asks quietly, sidling up behind me and pressing his groin against my ass. "You're getting all red."

I blush, looking away from the two men that I was now sandwiched between "Shut up. You two are sexy and it's been awhile."

"I can fix that right now if you'd like." Bickslow says, and I bite my lip at his suggestive expression.

"Yeah, as if that's gonna happen here, with all these other people nearby. Cool it Bicks." Laxus frowns, still holding me. The seith mage chuckles, scratching the back of his head.

"True. Sorry, I wasn't trying to be pushy." He says sheepishly as he moves back.

"It's okay. I really just want to enjoy your guys' company right now." I say as I run my hands along Laxus's tattooed chest. "And maybe get some more kisses."

Laxus grins, leaning down to place his warm lips against mine. I melt into him as he grips my hips tightly. It's the most skin to skin contact I've had with the dragon slayer and I found myself wishing for more. Bickslow moves back against me, sliding his hands around to play with the band of my swim bottoms. He runs his large tongue against my neck and I moan into Laxus's mouth.

My head is spinning and I pull away to catch my breath. Bickslow's soft lips replace Laxus's as he kissing me hungrily, his tongue moving to slide against mine. The two men kissed in totally different ways, but both were so equally amazing. The lightning mage grips my ass as he bites and kisses my neck and chest. I run my hands over his nipples and he growls, biting me harder. Bickslow slowly slides his hands further into my bottoms, his long fingers rubbing against my skin. _So much for just kissing._

I'm lost in bliss when loud shouting suddenly breaks us out of the spell. We all quickly pull away, my boyfriends both trying to tuck their arousal's away while I cross my legs, feeling liquid heat pooling between them. "I think we got carried away."

They nod, sighing when the shouting gets further away. I suggest we head back, and Bickslow kisses me one last time before we leave the secluded spot. We eventually make it back to where Freed, Mavis and Gramps are. They hardly notice our arrival and I'm grateful they won't be interrogating us on where we went. The shouting gets louder and we all look around to find the source of the disturbance. I deadpan when I see Natsu flying through the air and into Gray and Lyon, knocking the two ice mages onto the huge love slide that was the main attraction of the water park. The two ice mages grip each other tightly as they fly down the slide, and Juvia starts shouting about boy love.

"We should go too Laxy!" Bickslow cackles, sticking out his tongue.

The older man punches him in the arm and I giggle. Suddenly, the giant heart Natsu crashed into breaks away, sliding down and around the ride. We watch in horror as many of our guild mates are taken along on the ride all over the building.

"Wait, is that Ever?" Laxus says, pointing to the slide "and Elfman?"

I giggle as I see the terrified look on their faces. Evergreen quickly turns Elfman to stone, and I notice there are multiple other groups on the ride. "That is one huge slide!"

Suddenly, Gray and Lyon start fighting and the room grows cold. They activate their ice magic and the entire water park gets frozen over. I shiver, and we see Natsu suddenly stand up with his hand covered in flames. He shouts angrily, smashing the ice full force and the explosion sends everything flying. Bickslow grabs me and covers me from the blast, and the smoke clears to show total destruction. I'm smooshed beneath Bickslow, feeling disorientated. He slowly sits up and pulls me with him, as Laxus angrily walks away to confront the culprits.

"You okay baby?" Bickslow asks, brushing some dirt off my cheek. I nod and look around slowly. Everyone slowly stands up, recovering from the blast. The water park has completely crumbled around us.

"This is why we can't have nice things." I sigh as we both stand up.

The police show up, and eventually they go talk to Gramps, letting him know just how much damage there was.

"This is gonna cost so much!" He cries.

Gray and Natsu try to sneak away, and Laxus quickly punches their heads to knock them down. He picks them up by the scruff of their necks and grumbles "There's no running from this you two."

"We're sorry…" They groan, large bumps forming on their heads.

With that, we all start gathering up to leave.

"Well that was fun while it lasted." I comment as we start to walk back to the inn. Laxus stayed behind to help Gramps dish out a punishment for the two idiots responsible, so it was just me and the Thunder Legion.

"Yeah it was." Evergreen smiles, a distant look in her eyes.

"Ever got to spend lots of quality time with her beau!" Bickslow cackles, his babies shouting "Beau, beau" loudly.

"Please, don't pretend like you and Laxus didn't sneak off with (Y/n)." Freed says, a sly grin on his usually stoic face.

I blush when Ever gapes at us. She smacks the seith mage "Don't you two start tainting my little sister you hear me!"

"I was tainted long ago big sis." I giggle. She glares playfully at me and Bickslow slips his hand into mine. I look at him questioningly and he shrugs.

"I waited long enough for this, just let me enjoy it." He smiles and I squeeze his hand in response.

We finally reach the inn and everybody goes straight to bed. It had been such a long day, and I was excited for the fourth day of the Grand Magic Games. With Raven Tail gone we no longer had to worry about people targeting us illegally and could focus on doing our best. We might get to tell the guild about our relationship too. I was so nervous, but excited to tell everyone.

* * *

 _A/N: The Thunder Legion approves of the relationship! And Cana knows now too. She's one of my favorite guild members, so she's become one of Reader's best friends. I hope you all liked this chapter! I love writing interactions with the guild, it's so fun. Sorry about the delay, got a lot of shit going on in my life right now. And I started another story! It's a BickslowxOC story in a modern AU. Once I have enough chapters written I'll start posting that too._

 _See you next week! :D_


	10. Chapter 10

_If it's love, it's electric_

 _It'll be flowing on the streets_

 _Night after night_

 _Just to get through the week_

 _Sometimes it's hard_

* * *

The first event of the fourth day ended in probably the worst way possible.

My team fully expected Juvia to win the Naval Battle, being that she was a water mage. It really seemed like it would be an easy victory. We'd been doing so well lately, it felt like nothing could bring us down. However, Minerva from Sabertooth decided to participate as well and although Juvia did well, she didn't win. If only the events ended with that. But Minerva had other ideas.

Only Minerva and Lucy were left and without Aquarius, there was no way the celestial mage could win. Sure enough, we watched full of rage, as the Sabertooth mage beat and tortured poor Lucy. I found myself wishing once again that I had competed in this battle so I could kick some tiger ass. Although, my magic wouldn't help much in the water, besides my lightning. It was so frustrating feeling like I'd done nothing to help my guild during the games.

Afterward that terrible spectacle, Lucy was rushed off to the infirmary by Natsu. Me and both of the Fairy Tail teams all ran there as well to make sure she was okay. We burst into the room as Natsu set Lucy down gently on one of the beds. I stood in the crowded infirmary next to Laxus, watching as the rest of Team Natsu surrounded her bed. She slowly opened her eyes and we all sighed in relief. Lucy's team comforted her as she began to tear up and apologize for losing again. Happy gave her celestial keys to her and the blonde mage soon fell asleep again.

At that moment, Makarov entered the room and informed us that we'd have to merge into one team due to Raven Tail's disqualification. I was outraged to find out they were making us keep Team A's lower score, but Erza insisted we'd be fine. After careful deliberation, it was decided that the team would consist of Laxus, Erza, Gajeel, Gray and Natsu.

"This team is gonna be unstoppable!" Cana grinned as everybody left the infirmary, except Wendy and Carla who stayed behind to keep an eye on Lucy.

"I wish I had more chances to compete." I pouted. I felt like I'd been so useless this entire time. I only got to compete once and I got my ass handed to me.

"Just leave it to us shorty." Gajeel chuckled, patting the top of my head. "You've worked hard these past seven years for everyone, now it's our turn to repay you."

I smacked his hand away, smiling reluctantly. Although he was gruff and hard-headed, Gajeel was a really great person. Soon, the guards made everyone who was not competing go back into the Fairy Tail guild seating. The Thunder Legion had been relieved from their guard duty since Raven Tail was no longer a threat, and so I stood with them as we watched the competitors group up in the arena. Today was going to be two person tag team battles and I wondered who would be paired up from our team. They announced which teams would go in what order, and then everyone dispersed to go back to their seats.

"Man, the other guys aren't gonna know what hit them!" Bickslow cackled as he put his arm around me. It was something he did often so I didn't mind it. Nobody really paid attention to the display of affection besides Evergreen and Freed.

"You guys are pretty cute, I guess." The fairy mage giggled.

"Yes, but I have to admit they really don't look complete without Laxus." Freed said, grinning. I smiled happily at their teasing, knowing it was their way of letting us know they supported our relationship.

I looked up at Bickslow who winked at me from beneath his visor. I couldn't wait to tell everyone about us. Hopefully we'd be able to after today's events. With that thought, I turned back to the arena to watch the first fight only to gape in horror as Ichiya and a cat that looked just like him were going up against Bacchus and Rocker. It was promising to be a very strange fight. The two men from Quatro Puppy seemed as though they would win as they took out the strange cat-exceed person instantly, but then Ichiya transformed into a large shirtless man. He dedicates his new form to Nichiya,the cat, and surprisingly defeats the two men.

"That was disturbing." Evergreen said, shuddering. We all nodded silently in agreement, trying to forget the terrifying sight of Ichiya shirtless. "I think I'm going to go to the infirmary, I'm feeling a bit nauseous after that spectacle."

"Oh please! We all know you're just going down there to see your beau, Ever." Bickslow teases, sticking his tongue out at the fairy mage.

"He still hasn't recovered?" I ask, raising my eyebrows in surprise. "That's kinda sad."

"Shut it you two!" She growls, stomping off in annoyance.

Lyon and Yuka from Lamia Scale then step out to battle Millianna and Kagura. Everyone in the crowd seems to be divided on who they'd rather see win. both guilds were well liked, and the competitors were strong.

"I hope those two chicks kick Lamia Scale's butt!" Bickslow cackled "What about you babe?"

I ponder for a moment before responding "I hope Lyon and Yuka win. Lamia Scale helped us so much when you guys disappeared, they deserve my support."

Bickslow frowns at my wistful expression "Yeah, I hadn't thought about that…"

A loud bell signals the beginning of the match and we grow quiet. Kagura stands by and watches while the cat woman begins to attack the two men. The crowd goes wild when she lands the first hit, pouncing on Yuka and punching him repeatedly. She continues to attack both guys swiftly until Lyon summons a small ice mouse.

"Wait, what?" I laugh as Millianna instantly gets distracted and starts chasing the mouse across the field. Lyon begins using more attacks, and she's quickly on the defense. He summons a large ice tiger and Millianna runs away in fear, smacking straight into a wall and getting knocked out. "How did that even work..."

With her teammate down, Kagura is forced to join the match. She doesn't even use magic as she fights against Yuka, overpowering him with her sheathed sword. Soon, it's only her and Lyon fighting against each other and I begin to worry that Lamia Scale will lose. There's not much time left on the clock and Lyon is on the ropes, despite the fact that the woman has not even used magic yet.

"C'mon Lyon, get it together!" I hear someone shout, and we all look over to see Gray yelling from the team box. "And you call yourself Ur's student?! You're stronger than this!"

Lyon grins at the comment, and he squares his shoulders in determination. He quickly summons multiple large beasts to attack Kagura, who looks mildly impressed by the creations. They charge at her, and she responds by using her gravity magic to send them flying into the air. Lyon is sent up with them, powerless to do anything as she destroys the creatures and aims her next attack at him.

It seems he's done for when the bell goes off, signaling that time is up. Mato declares the match a draw. The two opponents stop, cancelling out their magic and dropping down to the ground. They both help their fallen guild mates up and leave the arena. All around us, the crowd is shouting wildly in anticipation for the next match—Sabertooth's Twin Dragons versus our two First Generation slayers.

"This is gonna be amazing!" I squeal, excited to see Natsu and Gajeel in action.

"I can't wait to watch them kick some ass!" Bickslow grins.

"Eh, they're nothing special. Laxus could beat all four of them by himself." Freed shrugs and I can't help but giggle. He probably wasn't even exaggerating when he said that. Man, how did I land such an incredible guy?

The four dragon slayers step out into the arena as we all shout words of encouragement. Natsu grins widely, throwing his fist into the air before turning back to the Twin Dragons. Mato is jumping around excitedly as he shouts "The time limit is 30 minutes! Let the match begin!"

He quickly leaves, and the two Sabertooth men take a running start toward Natsu and Gajeel. The latter are quick though, and everyone gasps when they both land a hit on the twin slayers. They can only defend against the fire and iron dragons until Sting uses his dragon roar, nearly hitting both Natsu and Gajeel. Rogue activates his shadow magic while Gajeel is distracted and slashes at him. The metal slayer changes his arm into a large sword and blocks the attack, sending the younger man flying. Natsu uses the chance and grabs Rogue, knocking him into Sting and hitting them both with his flames.

"Jeez, they barely started and already this match is intense..." I mutter, watching as the Sabertooth men stand and wipe the dirt off their chins.

They grin, and magic power begins swirling around them as they activate their Shadow Drive and White Drive, respectfully. Sting is the first to move, heading straight towards Natsu and effortlessly landing swift punches. Gajeel grits his teeth as the shadow dragon slayer attacks him as well. The Sabertooth mages are perfectly in sync while our team members can't help but quarrel with each other.

"Get it together Natsu!" Happy yells from his spot on the railing.

"Their magic power has increased drastically." Lily mumbles, watching the Sabertooth members. "Is that some type of dragon slayer magic? I've never seen it before."

"It's a magic amplification technique." Mavis says in response to everyone's confusion. "Not to mention, their combination skills are incredible."

"Even so, there's no way those two can beat Natsu and Gajeel." I insist.

Suddenly, Sting summons an incredible white light, shouting his attack as the blast fills the arena. We're all forced to shield our eyes from the blinding sight. The attack clears to show that Natsu has blocked it, much to everyone's surprise.

Sting goes pale as Natsu grips the his fist tightly in his hand. Meanwhile Gajeel punches Rogue, sending him flying and then quickly following up the attack with another. The two Sabertooth men are thrown into each other as our slayers continue to fight back, using little magic. They stop, giving the two men the chance to stand up again. We watch in shock as the two third generation dragon slayers activate their Dragon Force.

"There's no way!" Bickslow gapes, his mouth hanging open as his babies shout "No way!"

"They can activate Dragon Force just by willing it?" Freed says, frowning. I bite my lip as this new revelation promises to be a tough situation for our team members. The crowd grows quiet, suspense hanging heavily in the air.

Sting moves to attack both Natsu and Gajeel, and it's nearly impossible to see everything that's happening. There's a flurry of fists and magic as they fight, Rogue simply watching with a calm expression. Sting jumps high into the air, aiming a powerful dragon roar at the two and destroying the floor of the arena. We can no longer see the men, and large lacrima screens pop up around the stands to show us what is happening below.

"I've never seen them use this much magic before." I mutter, leaning on the railing and watching the screen in fascination. The two Sabertooth men fought often in the games, but never to this extent. For the first time this match, I feel worried that Natsu and Gajeel won't be able to bridge the gap in power.

Sure enough, Sting manages to knock them down to the ground, neither man moving. He laughs arrogantly, believing himself to be the victor. We all shout, begging the two slayers to stand up and fight. Sting deactivates his Dragon Force as Rogue joins him.

"Sorry man, I beat Gajeel-san too!" He says to the dark haired man. Rogue simply shrugs as they begin to turn away.

"Not so fast…"

The crowd goes wild as Natsu slowly stands back up, Gajeel following directly afterwards. They stretch, shaking off their soreness and laughing. Natsu grins at Stings stunned expression "I saw through all your attacks. I've memorized it all, down to the timing of your attacks and the rhythm of your breath."

"What?!" Sting growls and his partner sighs.

"Calm down Sting. He's bluffing." Rogue says calmly, a hint of anger in his red eyes.

"Gi-hi-hi, bluffing?" Gajeel grins "He ain't got the brains for something like that!"

"What did you say?!" Natsu growls and the two start bickering back and forth.

The whole guild can't help but laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of what was occurring. It should have been expected with those two. Didn't matter that this was meant to be an intense spectacle, they would never get along.

"Enough!" Natsu shouts suddenly, and he pushes Gajeel into a mining cart. We watch, dumbfounded, when he turns the lever and sends the helpless man on a ride through the tunnels below. Gajeel grips one hand over his mouth to keep from puking as he's carried out of sight. Natsu laughs, turning to the other mages and getting into a fighting stance "I can take both of you by myself!"

Their eyes go wide in shock before they activate their Dragon Force again, attacking him simultaneously. Natsu meets them hit for hit, squaring off with his own fire magic. The twin slayers are quickly losing ground, and try a unison raid. Their light and dark magic combine and Natsu simply stands there as they power up their attack.

The two men move in synchronization, pointing their fists at Natsu and sending the large attack directly at him. Natsu tenses at the last second, using his Crimson Lotus Exploding Flame Blade to counterattack. The combined magic power of the three slayers causes a huge explosion and the entire arena begins to shake. The lacrima visions go dark and we all wait impatiently to see the outcome. After a moment, the screens come back up and we see Rogue and Sting fall to the ground, defeated.

"The last one standing is Natsu Dragneel!" the announcer shouts, and the bell signals the end of the most incredible fight I've ever witnessed.

"He did it, he won!" I shout excitedly, my guild mates joining me in celebration. I jump on Bickslow who barely manages to catch me, and he twirls me around as they announce that Fairy Tail is in first place. There will be one day of rest before the final day, and I couldn't wait. Victory was within our reach.

When we got back to the inn, the entire guild was celebrating together. Now was probably the best time to tell everyone about our relationship, but I was feeling incredibly nervous. There was no telling how everyone would react. Polyamorous relationships were incredibly rare. The two men, sensing my unease, decided to give me a pep talk outside beforehand.

"Just think babe," Bickslow said, putting his hand on my shoulder "After we tell everyone, we won't have to keep it a secret and I can kiss you whenever you want me to."

I giggle, and Laxus reached over to rub my back as he spoke "If you want, I can be the one to tell them. Nobody will give me a hard time."

I sighed, "Yeah, I think that's a good idea. Is that okay with you Bixy? Laxus telling everyone?"

The seith mage nodded, a silly grin on his face "I don't care who says it as long as it's said."

We all hug, giving each other emotional support for this heart pounding moment. Bickslow cradled me into his side as the three of us walked into the building together. Our guild mates went quiet at our entrance as though they somehow realized we had something important to share. I couldn't help but blush at their curious stares.

"Listen up everyone." Laxus yelled, despite the silence "I know this may seem strange or weird to some of you, but we wanted everyone to know that we're in a polyamorous relationship together. The three of us make each other happy, and if anybody has a problem with that then let me know now so I can kick your ass."

I rolled my eyes at his threat, and braced myself for the outcry. However, it didn't come. Instead, everybody smiled and began shouting congratulations.

"Nice going snagging those two sexy guys (Y/n)!" Cana called from her seat at the bar.

"It's odd, but you three look so cute together!" Mira giggled, the other girls nodding in agreement.

"Wait, what's a poly-dactyl whatever?" Natsu shouted, and I giggled.

"It's polyamorous flame-brain!" Gray said, smacking the pink haired man in the back of the head "It means they're all three in love with each other."

"Wait, so Laxus and Bickslow are gay?" Someone asked as the two rivals started fighting, and Laxus scowled.

"I'm bisexual," Bickslow shrugged before the other man could say anything "And Laxus is straight, but he's attracted to me. It's confusing, but in the end it's really all about (Y/n) in our relationship. We do whatever will make her the happiest."

I smile brightly at Bickslow's explanation. They were so fucking great. I didn't care what people wanted to label our relationship as. It didn't matter, all that mattered was that I was finally with the two men I cared for more than anyone else.

"I'm so glad you three have found love." Makarov said suddenly as he walked up to us, and I sighed in relief. Out of everyone, I worried about his approval the most, being that he was Laxus's grandfather and our guild master. "After all that you guys have been through, you deserve the best out of life. You guys make such a great couple-er… trio… If this is what makes you happy, then we all support you."

"Thanks Gramps." Laxus said, grinning as he shook his grandfather's hand firmly.

The guild all shouted at that, declaring that we should drink to the occasion. Although, they were already drinking anyway so it wasn't much different. Just, even more enthusiastically if that was possible. _Of course it's possible. This is Fairy Tail_.

Our announcement over, we felt a huge weight lifted off our shoulders. I looked up to my two boyfriends and smiled widely at them. Someone began chanting, demanding that we kiss. I rolled my eyes, planning to ignore their shouts until one of the men grasped me and pulled me into a kiss. Instantly, I could tell it was Laxus and found myself surprised. He was not one for PDA, but I supposed he did say he wanted everyone to know who belonged to him.

After a moment Laxus pulled back, grinning at me before letting me go. Bickslow grabbed me then and kissed me, the action full of emotion. It was like he was trying to convey how he felt, waiting all this time to finally show how much he wanted me. The two kisses left me feeling dazed, the noise from our guild mates barely reaching my ears.

"Now Bickslow and Laxus kiss!" A voice shouted suddenly, and I knew right away it was Cana. Laxus rolled his eyes, until the seith mage turned his grin towards the larger man.

"I mean, it wouldn't be the first time boss." Bickslow winked, and then he turned towards me "What do you think sweets, is that okay with you?"

"This isn't gonna be about me all the time babe. You already know what I'm okay with." I said, pointing to Laxus "Ask him."

We both looked at Laxus, who has a slight blush. He tries to scowl, but a grin breaks through as he shrugs "Eh, why not? We are dating, after all."

People were nearly screaming as Bickslow grinned widely, pulling Laxus towards him and kissing him deeply. Laxus quickly dominated the kiss, sliding his lips against Bickslow's. The sight was incredible to say the least. When I first found myself falling for these two, I never imagined it would come to this. I found myself feeling exhilarated and a little turned on as well. They were just so handsome and so amazing, and their kissing did not make me feel jealous at all. It made me happy to see that they truly enjoyed this relationship, and that our affections would benefit each person equally.

The two men parted breathlessly, and Laxus reached out to pull me into their chests. I cuddled up to my boyfriends as the guild continued on with their celebration, everyone talking about the mind-boggling kiss between the two men.

"I think that went well." I giggled, resting my head against Laxus's chest.

"Definitely." The two men spoke in unison, their foreheads leaning against each other as they towered over me.

We parted, and I was quickly pulled away by Cana who brought me to a table with Levy, Wendy, Erza and Juvia. I was handed a mug of ale as the women began asking me question after question. They ranged from totally innocent and curious, to downright lewd and inappropriate. Mostly those were from Cana, of course. I did my best to answer, but I couldn't help watching my two boyfriends. They were drinking and talking with some of the other men in the guild. I'd hardly even seen Laxus look so cheerful before. It was amazing to see his handsome face with a breathtaking smile on it. His grey eyes were bright, and when I looked at Bickslow I cursed his visor. His eyes were so striking when he smiled too.

"Juvia wishes Gray-sama would admit his love for her like that." The water mage said, sighing.

"I didn't know you could date more than one person." Wendy frowned "I thought that was considered cheating."

I shook my head "Not at all. The idea behind polyamory is that all parties involved in the relationship are fully aware of what's going on. We set rules and expectations for one another that we follow."

"So what's the sex like? Do you guys have threesomes? I have a hard time picturing Laxus getting it on with another man there." Cana asked, smirking as Erza choked on her drink. The requip mage cleared her throat and blushed, nearly fainting. I could only imagine what she was picturing in her overactive mind.

"We actually haven't had sex yet." I said "We've only been together for a couple days."

"So have you guys been on any dates?" Levy asked with a smile, and I frowned when I realized we hadn't even done that, unless you counted last night at the water park. I hadn't expected either of them to be there, so I didn't consider it a date.

"No, not yet." I pout "It's been so hectic lately."

I thought more about how far our relationship had come. It seemed like we'd been through so much when in reality, we barely knew anything about each other's interests. What was it really like to be in a relationship with these two? Beyond what we knew from being friends and guild mates, there wasn't much there. I knew a bit about Bickslow and things he liked, and I knew even less about Laxus. The thought dismayed me, and I scowled down at my mug of ale.

"Well, everybody has tomorrow off." Levy says, trying to cheer me up "Maybe you guys will be able to go out!"

"If those two don't take you on a date I will severely punish them." Erza said, pounding her fist on the table. "A woman needs to be wooed!"

"I'd rather if my boyfriends didn't get severely maimed, especially since one of them is competing in the games." I laughed nervously.

At that moment, Gajeel walked into the bar looking disheveled. It seemed he'd finally gotten off that mine cart. Instead of starting a fight and yelling he walked quickly over to where Gray, Natsu, and Lucy where talking. He pulled Natsu to the side, his face solemn as he insisted the fire mage come see something. Lucy, Gray and Happy followed Natsu and Gajeel curiously as they headed towards the door. On their way out Gajeel came up to our table, telling Wendy to come with them. She followed along, both her and Carla looking confused. I watched curiously as they all walked out together. It seemed like something pretty serious,judging by Gajeel's expression. Deciding it was a problem for another time, I stand up, waving to the girls before walking over to my boyfriends. They'd settled down at a high-top table together, finally able to relax after being questioned themselves by all the guys.

"Hey, how was girl time?" Bickslow teased, pulling me under his arm. His babies chirped happily, nuzzling me as they repeated "Girl time, girl time!"

"It was interesting to say the least." I said, a laugh that was part sigh leaving me.

"You know I couldn't help but overhear you guys..." Laxus said hesitantly, and I nodded. Of course, the dragon slayer hearing made it easy for the man to hear everyone in the room. "I like the idea of going on a date tomorrow. How about we meet out front in the morning? We can spend all day together."

"I'll make sure to dress super cute." Bickslow snickered. Laxus only rolled his eyes at the younger man's antics.

"Sounds good." I giggled, excited that Laxus was suggesting a date so soon. "I really don't want Erza to maim you two."

"Was there any place in particular you wanted to go?" Laxus asked, looking to both me and Bickslow. "Anything either of you wanted to do?"

"I'm fine with whatever you guys decide." I respond.

"It has to be special." Bickslow says "This is our first date."

"Alright, just leave it to me then." Laxus grins. "Beneath these rugged good looks and strong muscles is a true romantic ya know."

He winks and I bit my lip, blushing and smiling like a fool in love "I can't wait."

* * *

 _A/N: Pretty short chapter, sorry if the fighting scenes are shit. Leave a review and let me know what you think!_


	11. Chapter 11

_Look what has happened with just one kiss_

 _I never knew that I could be in love like this_

 _It's crazy but it's true_

 _I only want to be with you_

* * *

On the morning of our rest day, I wake up with butterflies in my tummy. I'd never been nervous for a date before, so that was a first. After all this time, I never expected to be going out with two men who'd been so important to me. As I grew up, I explored my sexuality openly. However, besides dating Eve for a few months, I'd never really had long relationships. Laxus had been the only guy I'd ever actually had a crush on, and that had turned out _so well_. Not to mention the years I spent in anguish over my guild's disappearance. The last thing I wanted was to give my heart to someone just for it to end. I'd given up on ever really finding happiness after everything I'd been through, but here I was. Over seven years later, and I was going an actual date that I felt genuinely excited and nervous for. And it was not only with Laxus, but Bickslow as well.

The girls had, of course, heard about our date, so they insisted on helping me get ready. We all met up in the spacious room Evergreen and a few of the other girls were sharing. They all brought some of their cutest clothes so that we could find the "perfect" outfit. The room was a mess with clothes and shoes and accessories placed all over. Currently, we were all standing over the piles of clothes, trying to decide what I should wear.

"It would help if we knew where they're taking you." Erza muttered, studying the articles of clothing strewn across the beds with a serious look on her face.

"Knowing Laxus and that he's the one planning the date, it's gonna be something fun." Evergreen said "Something where he won't have to talk much, too."

I giggled "Yeah, he's not the best with words. He's a man of action for sure."

"You can't go wrong with a dress!" Levy said, picking up a short red sundress from the bed. She holds it up with a smile and I shrug.

"Eh, I'm not really one for dresses." I muttered.

"How about a skirt?" Cana suggested as she sipped from her flask "Easy access amirite?"

"Inappropriate comment aside, I think a skirt would do well." Erza had an intense and focused look on her face as she gazed at the enormous pile. The requip mage took clothing _very_ seriously.

The other women nodded in agreement at her statement, and we searched through the clothes, picking out the skirts. Everyone had offered to lend me something for today, and luckily we were all basically the same size. I was grateful to have so many friends here to help me get ready. With the amount of options having been narrowed down, I focused on the skirts laid in front of me. Eventually I chose a sky blue high waisted mini skirt with a thin silver belt attached to it.

"This top would look so perfect with that." Levy said, bringing me a black bardot shirt.

"Oh yes!" Evergreen grinned "Try it on and let's see!"

I quickly changed into the outfit, twirling around so everyone could see. The top fit perfectly, and was tight against my skin to balance out the flowing skirt. It tucked neatly into the skirt, the belt contrasting nicely with the two colors. The small sleeves hung off my shoulders, leaving them bare. My guild mark showed proudly, and I smiled as I looked down at my outfit. "I love it."

"We just need to accessorize!" Evergreen declared, walking over to the dresser where we all had some of our jewelry carefully displayed.

"A choker would look really good with that." Cana said, and I grinned excitedly.

"Yes! I have plenty of those." I giggled. They were my favorite accessory. I grabbed my favorite one, black leather with a metal ring on the front. It matched perfectly with the silver from the belt and my black shirt. "This one would go great with my outfit!"

"Shoes are probably the most important part now." Erza said "You want something cute, but practical in case you guys are gonna be walking around a lot."

I opened my mouth to respond, but Evergreen cut me off "No boots! You wear them far too much (Y/n)."

My mouth slammed shut as I pouted "Fine."

They all giggled at my petulant expression, and Evergreen grabbed a pair of lace-up platform heels, shoving them at me. I looked at them skeptically "I dunno Ever, heels?"

"They're not even three inch heels, you'll be fine." She said "And besides, these are different. They're super comfy and so easy to walk in."

Erza suddenly grabbed them from me, inspecting them closely. "Are these what I think they are? The ones they enchant to fit any size, made to feel like normal shoes? I've wanted a pair of these for so long! They're impossible to get!"

Evergreen smirked haughtily, "They sure are! They're my best pair, and nobody is allowed to use them! Except my sister, of course."

"Thanks Ever." I smiled, putting on the heels after Erza dejectedly handed them back to me.

The quality of the shoes was apparent immediately and I felt as though I was wearing a comfy pair of sneakers instead of heels. The black ribbons went around my calves and up to my knees, staying perfectly in place. These heels were the most amazing pair I'd ever seen or worn. I gave myself a final look in the mirror, admiring my outfit. My hair was tied in a high pony tail, some pieces left out to frame my face. My makeup was on point, just enough to make a difference but not enough to be overpowering.

"Looks like your men are ready too (Y/n)." Levy said suddenly, looking out the window. The women all rushed over to the window to get a look at the two men.

"Wow, Bickslow looks damn good!" Cana said "I hardly ever see him without his bulky armor."

"And Laxus is so handsome!" Evergreen cooed, sounding like a proud mother complimenting her son as he waited for his prom date.

I glanced out the window briefly, blushing at the sight of my two handsome boyfriends. Although, I could hardly get a good look with all the girls standing there staring. Laxus must have heard us, cuz he looked up to the window then and glared at the women looking down at them. They all backed away, giggling.

"Guess that's my cue." I chuckled, smoothing out the fabric of my skirt nervously.

They all followed me as I walked downstairs slowly, my heart pounding. It hit me suddenly how important this day was. Our first date as an official trio... I was so excited. There were a bunch of people standing downstairs as we walked into the room, and they all turned to look at me with wide grins.

"You look beautiful (Y/n)." Gramps said, walking up to me. "My grandson is a lucky guy!"

I leaned down, hugging the small man "Thanks Gramps."

"You three have fun alright?" He said as I stood up straight and began walking out.

I giggled as everyone shouted words of support behind me. It felt like I was a kid with my parents waving me off on my first real date with a boy. I'd been on lots of dates in the past, but it was never like this. My whole family was here, wishing me well. It was so surreal. I'd never expected to experience anything like this when they all disappeared on Tenrou. I was so glad to have them back.

My stomach was full of butterflies as I opened the door, squinting at the bright sunlight. I walked out, instantly greeted with the smiling faces of my boyfriends. Back in the room upstairs I had barely seen them through the window, but now I could fully appreciate them.

Laxus was wearing a deep red button up shirt with the top buttons undone and the sleeves rolled up, paired with black loose fitting pants. His fur lined coat was in its permanent spot hanging off his shoulders. He had his spiky locks slicked back just a bit, making him look very mature. Bickslow had on a black flight jacket and white button up shirt, paired with jeans and boots. His visor was gone, since he knew how much I loved to see his face, but he still wore a pair of aviators. His babies floated around him, buzzing excitedly. The two men looked totally different, but both were equally handsome. I walked up to them with a light blush on my cheeks, suddenly feeling shy.

"You guys look great." I said breathlessly.

"Not as great as you look." Laxus responded, pulling me gently towards him and kissing me lightly.

"I agree, how did we get so lucky?" Bickslow grinned. His babies chimed along "Lucky, lucky!"

"Funny, I was thinking the same thing." I giggled "So, what's the plan for today?"

"The plan is for us to spend all day with each other." Laxus said "There's a bunch of stuff going on today, but I figured we could start with the street fair they've got going on downtown, maybe grab some dinner after, and walk the gardens tonight when they have all the lights on."

"Sounds great." I smiled, grabbing his hand and silently thanking Evergreen for the shoes. It seemed like we'd be doing a lot of walking today. Bickslow moved to my other side and held my other hand, and we all walked in the direction Laxus led us in.

As we walked, I couldn't help noticing all the strange looks people were giving us. They whispered to each other, but I couldn't hear what they were saying. I glanced over at Laxus, because I knew he could hear them, and he scowled. The people hurriedly looked away, afraid of the intimidating man. I couldn't contain my sigh. This really was a strange sight to see, and I could guess what they were saying. Even if our guild approved of our relationship, didn't mean everyone would.

"People just don't know how to mind their own business." Bickslow said, rolling his eyes.

"Let 'em stare." Laxus grunted "I want everyone to know about us."

I felt the corner of my mouth turn up in a grin, and pointedly looked ahead to ignore the looks we were getting. It didn't matter what anyone said, I was happier than I'd ever been.

After walking a few blocks, we could hear lots of noise and music from the street fair. We reached the street it was on and I grinned excitedly at all the decorations. Flowers were strung everywhere, full of color. There were tons of little stalls and carts selling different things like food, jewelry and clothing. Flamboyantly dressed people moved through the crowds, some playing instruments and others juggling random objects.

We walked along for a while, just talking and checking out all the beautiful art work people created on the spot. I didn't have much money, and I was somewhat glad. If I did, I'd probably buy way too much stuff. Somebody handing out free flower garlands walked by and I happily accepted one, placing it around my neck. It would have to be my souvenir from this day.

"This city really knows how to celebrate eh?" Bickslow grinned as we finished walking all the merchant booths "What should we do now?"

I scanned the area, trying to see all the different attractions they had. There was a large ferris wheel and many other rides in an open field nearby. I thought about suggesting that, but realized Laxus couldn't join us on any of the rides with his motion sickness. Instead, I looked over to where they had lots of carnival games.

"How about that?" I said, pointing to the games.

"Heck yes, I'm gonna win you a stuffed animal!" Bickslow laughed, grabbing my hand and running over to a stall with balloons taped to the wall. The man working at the booth handed Bickslow six darts, explaining the rules as Laxus cradled me into his side.

"Bicks is amazing at darts." Laxus muttered as the seith mage got into a throwing stance. I watched in fascination as he hit his target every time "I've lost quite a few jewels over the years to him in dart competitions. The bastard always goads me into a bet when I'm drunk."

I giggled as the worker sighed, handing Bickslow a cute little monkey. The seith mage turned to me with a wide grin on his face.

"That was easy!" He chuckled, handing me the stuffed animal. It was really soft and plush and I cradled it to my chest happily.

"Hey, it kind of looks like you!" Laxus teased, pinching Bickslow in the side.

"You're just mad I won something and you didn't." He responded, sticking his tongue out.

"I didn't even compete." Laxus said, scowling. "If I had I probably could have gotten something bigger."

"Oh shut it. You guys are ridiculous." I said, rolling my eyes. Despite my scolding, I smiled and pulled Bickslow in to kiss him "Thanks Bicks."

"You're welcome baby. And I'll win you something too Laxy, don't worry." Bickslow grinned, throwing his arm around the taller man. The worker at the booth gave us a weird look, and we decided to move on to something else.

We walked a bit further until we came upon a game that gained Laxus's interest. It was called a high striker, and was used to test a person's strength. The player had to swing a mallet as hard as they could to ring the bell at the top. The man trying currently could not get the puck to reach the bell, much to his dismay. He left, and the operator called out to see if there was anyone strong enough to ring the bell.

"Too easy." Laxus chuckled, a swagger in his steps as he walked up and grabbed the mallet.

"I don't think this game is meant for mages." I mutter, seeing the worker's nervous expression as Laxus readied his swing.

Sure enough, Laxus hit the lever and sent the puck flying. It smacked into the bell and knocked it completely off. It fell with a loud clang, and the employee angrily grabbed the mallet away from Laxus.

"Nice one boss!" Bickslow laughed "You really are the strongest." His babies cheerfully repeated "Strongest,strongest!"

"Let's go before he starts demanding payment." Laxus muttered, grabbing the seith mage and pulling him away. I waved apologetically to the man before following my two boyfriends.

The three of us continued on through the street fair, occasionally stopping to buy treats and look at all the art and entertainment everywhere. Eventually we reached a stage where a band was playing and lots of people were dancing. We stopped, enjoying the music and carefree atmosphere. I found myself tapping my feet to the beat, grinning widely.

"Wanna dance?" Bickslow asked, noticing my movements.

"Oh! Uhm," I hesitated, not wanting to leave Laxus alone. This date was for the three of us, and I didn't want to leave anyone out. I motioned down to the stuffed monkey in my arms "I've got to carry this, and I don't want to make Laxus hold it.

"I don't mind. I'm not one for dancing anyway; don't let me stop you (Y/n)." Laxus said, taking the prize and guiding me towards Bickslow. His babies stayed with the dragon slayer, watching us.

The seith mage pulled me into his chest, instantly spinning around. My flower necklace fluttered in the breeze as he spun me. We continued turning until we merged with the crowd of dancers and began to move to the music. I threw my head back and laughed as all the bright colors swirled together. Bickslow was, unsurprisingly, a great dancer. All his acrobatics training left him nimble and light on his feet, especially when he wasn't weighed down by his heavy armor. We danced spiritedly to a few songs before slowing down a bit. We moved closer together, dancing slowly. After a moment, I looked up at Bickslow who was smiling down at me, an oddly serious expression on his usually playful face.

"What?" I asked, blushing at his intense gaze.

"Just thinking about how much I love you." He responded, and my mouth fell open in surprise.

"You love me?" I said, nearly tripping as I was caught off guard. My heart skipped a beat as his confession, and then began pounding wildly.

"I do." He kissed me, pulling me tightly against him as we rocked together gently "It may seem a bit sudden, but I've been falling for you ever since I saw you walk into the guild after we returned. You had such a strong and beautiful presence about you. Your soul was practically blinding."

"Bickslow…" I muttered as I stopped moving, staring up at him. I'd never heard him speak so sincerely. I thought hard about his confession, and realized I felt the same way. He was my best friend (which I would never in a million years let Evergreen know that, lest she strangle me) and we were so perfect for each other. I laughed, biting my lip and grinning "I love you too. I think I've known for a while that I felt this way, which is why it was so hard to make a decision before we agreed to polyamory… You're incredible Bicks, and I couldn't imagine my life without you."

We kissed again, ignoring our surroundings as the band stopped playing and everybody clapped for them. I pulled back after a moment and he let me go.

"We should probably get back to Laxus." Bickslow said, motioning to where the man sat at a bench. He was surrounded by Bickslow's totems and a few fan girls, looking annoyed.

I couldn't help but roll my eyes. He hated when people fawned over him, but women just flocked to him. No matter how much he scowled at them. "Yeah, let's do that, before he zaps them all."

We started to walk over to him, and suddenly Bickslow ran ahead of me. He threw himself into the man's lap, grabbing his face and kissing him fiercely. The girls gasped as Bickslow pulled back and snickered "Did ya miss me Laxy?"

I couldn't help but gape at the two when Laxus willing held the seith mage in his arms and grinned "Maybe a bit."

The girls pouted, assuming he was both gay and taken, and left. Laxus turned his attention towards me as Bickslow got off his lap, and he held out his hand. "I missed you too (Y/n), come here."

I chucked as I walked over to him, grabbing his outstretched palm. He pulled me into his lap and I wrapped my arms around his neck as I smirked at him "That was quite the spectacle."

"Not nearly as much as your guy's confession was." Laxus responded and I stiffened, hoping he didn't feel upset. "I guess I've got my work cut out for me when it's my turn eh?"

I looked at him, surprised to see not a hint of jealousy or any other negative emotion on his face. "You aren't upset?"

"Why would I be upset?" He asked, frowning "You guys love each other, that's a good thing. Isn't that what dating is about anyway? Falling in love?"

I blushed, my heart pounding at hearing the word _love_ come from the lightning mages lips. I knew neither of us were to that point yet, but I found myself excited for when it finally happened. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

The two men grinned at me, and I got off Laxus's lap to sit between them. I grabbed the little monkey plush from beside Laxus and placed it on my lap. We sat for a few minutes, relaxing. There weren't any people nearby now that the band had stopped playing, and I enjoyed the quiet time. This had been probably the best date I'd ever been on and it was barely even halfway through.

"I could use a smoke right now, how about you guys?" Bickslow said after a bit, pulling out a metal case that he kept his joints in. I realized it had been a long time since I smoked and quickly agreed. He cut off his magic supply to his babies as he lit the joint, and the little totems dropped gently down onto the bench.

We passed around the joint until it was gone, talking amicably. The three of us shared little stories about ourselves, getting to know each other a bit better. After awhile, I felt myself growing hungry. We hadn't really eaten much besides small treats here and there. My stomach growled loudly and the two men laughed at my mortified expression.

"I think your tummy is trying to tell us something." Bickslow teased, poking my side.

"Shut it." I pouted "I haven't had much to eat."

"I could go for some food right about now too." Laxus said, standing up and stretching. I tried to fight a blush when his shirt rode up and exposed some of his toned stomach. He dropped his arms back down and I quickly looked away. "Let's go, I already picked out a place earlier."

He held out his hand, helping me stand. Bickslow's babies followed along once again as we all left. We walked a few blocks away to a quieter street and Laxus led us to a small restaurant that had a large patio out front. He spoke to the hostess, and she seated us outside. Our table was right next to the railing, facing the road. People walked by, enjoying the peaceful atmosphere and we quietly looked at the menu.

"This is a charming little restaurant." Bickslow complimented "Nice pick Laxus."

"Thanks." He said "And this is my date, so I'm paying. Don't worry about prices, alright?"

I nodded "Okay, but next one is on me."

"If the lady wishes it, I won't deny her!" Bickslow chuckles, waggling his tongue "Guess I get the third date."

We continued our pleasant small talk until the waiter brought us waters and took our orders. He paled when Laxus asked for multiple different meals for himself, and I laughed when the man asked if he was sure he wanted that much food.

"Trust me, he's sure." Bickslow informed the waiter, and proceeded to order his own massive plate.

I ordered last, and Laxus asked the waiter to bring us two bottles of wine. The man put in our orders and quickly brought us the two bottles and some glasses. We toasted, sipping slowly on the alcohol until our food arrived. I found myself smiling the entire time, talking with the two men about anything and everything. My cheeks were going to be so sore by the end of the day with how much I'd been smiling.

"So, I never heard the story of how you came to Fairy Tail, Bickslow." I looked at the seith mage as Laxus shoveled heaps of food into his mouth. Thankfully, he was at least clean about it, unlike Natsu.

"Really?" Bickslow said, stopping for a moment to think. "Hm, I guess so. I've never really talked about it with anyone, to be honest."

"I hardly know anything about you from before Fairy Tail." I suddenly realized, frowning. Apparently I knew less about Bickslow than I thought.

"Well, I can tell you. You're my girlfriend, so it's natural you would know everything about me. " He sat back in his chair, having finished his food. I leaned my arms on the table, listening intently as he began his background story. "I grew up in a nearby country called Bosco, east of here. I came from a family with little magic. I learned about seith magic from my grandfather, who passed away when I was young. He was a great guy- you two would have gotten along really well… He was actually the one who gave me my first soul, Pappa."

He has a wistful smile on his face as Pappa buzzed contently next to him. "After my gramps passed away, my parents kind of shunned me. They thought seith magic was creepy. I had an older sister who didn't have any magic, so I was the black sheep. Eventually, I got sick of the mistreatment and left. I packed up what little belongings I had and began to travel on foot. I never looked back…

"I had no real plan or destination in mind as I wandered. During my travels I found two more lost souls, and managed to convince them to join me and Pappa. It really tested my magic having three souls like that, since before then I'd almost never used it. My babies constantly draw on my power, so you can imagine how tiring that could get when you weren't used to using _any_ magic... Eventually, I ended up passing out from exhaustion near Mount Hakobe. I probably would have freezed to death if Laxus hadn't found me. He reamed me so bad, calling me pathetic for fainting like that. I had no idea who this kid even was, and there he stood, yelling at me after he saved me. I ended up getting so annoyed that I used my soul possession on him and made him punch himself."

I looked over to Laxus who pouted "I had a huge bruise on my face for weeks."

"Yeah, you did!" Bickslow laughed "I felt bad, so I stuck around to make sure he was okay. The rest is history, I guess. I joined Fairy Tail and eventually so did Freed and Ever. We've all been inseparable ever since."

"I wouldn't say inseparable." Laxus grunted, a small grin on his face.

"Awh, you know you love me." Bickslow chuckled, sticking his tongue out.

The waiter came to clear our plates then, and set the check down. Laxus paid as we finished off the wine, and we left. The three of us held hands as we walked slowly towards the capital building, Mercurius. Bickslow continued to share embarrassing stories about the Thunder Legion and Laxus as we walked. Laxus scowled as Bickslow finished his story, and I couldn't help laughing.

"Oh man, that's great." I giggled, wiping a tear from my eyes. "You guys are so cute."

It was dark out by the time we reached the vast garden surrounding the palace. There were thousands of multicolored lights along the pathways, casting an ethereal glow on the place. Large bushes were neatly trimmed to act like walls, and flowers bloomed brightly everywhere. It was summer, which was the best time for the blossoms. Mosaic tiles placed in intricate patterns lined the walkways we wandered down, and I felt overwhelmed by the sheer beauty of the flower garden. I looked over at my boyfriends, wondering what they thought of the place, only to see them both looking at me.

"What?" I asked, stopping and crossing my arms. "You guys too cool to look at pretty flowers?"

"Nah, we just like looking at you more." Bickslow grinned.

I rolled my eyes "That was pretty cheesy babe."

"Yet you're blushing." Laxus teased.

He was right, I could feel the warmth of my cheeks from Bickslow's declaration. There was no use denying it. I giggled, turning away and continuing down the path. It wound around in random directions, and the high bushes made it impossible to know where you were going. I frowned. "This place is like a maze.'

"Yeah, and it's pretty dead too." Laxus said "I figured everyone would be out doing stuff right now since it's a rest day and there are no competitions, but I haven't even heard any voices since we walked in here."

"Eh, everyone probably got their fill of the place before the games began." Bickslow said "We didn't get to cuz Master made us come in late so nobody would see you guys."

"True." Laxus nodded.

We came upon a bench, and Bickslow suggested we sit for a little. His babies settled nearby as he sat down. He glanced down as I sat next to him and frowned "You must be dying in those shoes (Y/n)."

I looked down at my feet, having totally forgotten I was wearing heels "Not at all actually. Evergreen lent me these; she said they're magically enchanted to be as comfy as tennis shoes. I honestly forgot I was wearing them."

"You _sure_ you don't need a foot rub?" Bickslow said, wiggling his eyebrows and waggling his tongue.

"I'm good." I giggled, leaning against Laxus as he sat on the other side me.

Despite my rejection at his offer, the seith mage grabbed my ankles and laid my legs over his. He didn't rub my feet, and instead rubbed his hands along my calves. It felt amazing, and I closed my eyes and laid my head back against Laxus to enjoy the attention. After a while, his caresses got bolder as he moved his hands to my thigh. His fingers barely slipped under my skirt, and my lips parted slightly as my breathing sped up in anticipation.

As soon as I did that, I felt another pair of lips connect with my own. Laxus was leaning over me, kissing me. He slid his lips against mine, parting them more to make room for his tongue. Bickslow continued to teasingly run his hand over my thigh, growing closer and closer to my core. I moaned into my kiss with Laxus, wrapping my arms around his neck. He leaned in more, wrapping one arm around my front and placing his other hand on the back of my neck for support.

I was overwhelmed by the many different feelings. Bickslow began playing with the band of my thong as Laxus twined his tongue with mine. I parted my legs slightly, desperate to feel Bickslow's touch more. He chuckled, although I hardly heard it over the sound of blood rushing in my ears. Laxus gripped my neck tightly, his other hand sliding up my stomach and nearing my chest. I pulled away with a gasp as Bickslow gently pressed his finger against my clit over my panties. Laxus dove on my chest, nipping and biting at the skin. He held me up, keeping me from falling back as I ground my hips against the seith mage's talented fingers.

We were lost in pleasure when we suddenly heard loud shouting from the direction of the castle. I stiffened in embarrassment, and quickly stood up. My heart was racing as I straightened my skirt, trying to ignore the wetness between my legs. The yells continued, and my eyes widened when I recognized the voices as belonging to our guild mates.

"Man, this keeps happening." Bickslow complained, crossing his arms and pouting.

"Maybe we should stop getting hot and heavy in public." I giggled, smoothing back my hair.

"Let's go see what's going on." Laxus said, standing up "This doesn't sound good."

Our passionate moment was quickly forgotten as we left the gardens, Laxus leading the way. When we exited, we came face to face with the royal guard throwing out the group of mages that followed Gajeel last night. _Why are they leaving the palace? Where they there this whole time?_ I noticed Lucy wasn't with them, and felt even more confused when I saw Natsu looking completely exhausted. The group shouted angrily at the knights as they went back into the palace. Natsu was the only one quiet, and he was leaning heavily on Gray, barely awake. They stopped yelling when Laxus called out as we ran up to them.

"What's happened?" He asked.

"Those damn bastards took Lucy and Natsu got his magic power sapped!" Gray said, "They've got some crazy shit going on. We need to talk to Gramps right away!"

"Here, I'll carry Natsu and we can all go." Laxus responded, effortlessly picking up the pink haired mage and tossing him over his shoulder. Natsu merely grunted in discomfort as Laxus began walking.

"So how come you guys are leaving the palace?" I asked Gajeel as we walked back to the inn. "Did you go there last night?"

"They kept us in cells overnight until they decided to release us." He responded "We learned some top secret information, but they couldn't keep so many Fairy Tail members without rousing suspicion, so they released all of us 'cept Lucy. I think they want to watch her and that Yukino chick so they can't activate the Eclipse Gate."

"Eclipse Gate?" Bickslow repeated, his babies mimicking the question.

"We'll tell you guys everything when we get to the inn, that way Gramps can hear it too." The metal slayer responded, and suddenly his serious expression was replaced with a grin. He eyed me, chuckling "So, what was going on with you guys? Your neck is all red and you reek like these two idiots, gi-hi-hi."

I blushed, before realizing he was the only guild member that wasn't there when we made the announcement. "We're actually dating."

"All three of you?" Gajeel said, his pierced brows going up.

"Yup." I grinned, popping the last letter.

"They're in looovveeee." Happy snickered, flying over our heads.

"Shut it!" I said, as Laxus shouted the same thing at the exact same time.

With that, everyone was quiet. The tension in the air was thick as we swiftly made our way back to Honeybone Inn. Laxus slammed open the door and the few people inside turned excitedly, expecting to hear about our date, but stopped when they saw the lightning slayer carrying Natsu. I sighed as I looked at the three women in the room, Mira, Erza, and Juvia, and they narrowed their eyes in confusion. They stayed silent, however, as Laxus walked up to Makarov who was sitting at the bar.

"What in the world is going on?" He grunted, standing up as Laxus not-so-gently dropped Natsu onto the floor. "Where have you all been?"

"Where's Lucy?" Erza asked, joining the crowd of people gathered in front of Gramps.

Gray proceeded to inform everyone of what happened the day they were gone. The other mages helped fill in the gaps as we were told all about the dragon graveyard and the Milky Way spell Wendy cast to speak to one of the beasts. They continued on, informing us of the Eclipse Gate and their plan to defeat Zeref using it. I was shocked to hear that the games were a ruse intended to steal magic power from wizards. After all this time, they had ulterior motives for the competition that meant so much to everyone. Bickslow grabbed my hand, sensing my unease. Finally, they explained how the Minister of Defense arrested them and kept them imprisoned before releasing everyone except Yukino and Lucy.

Suddenly, Natsu jolted up and began shouting "I'm gonna destroy those bastards!"

Laxus moved quickly, grabbing the smaller man by the scruff of his neck and keeping him from running off to storm the castle. Someone got some rope out and they quickly tied the struggling fire mage to a post. Gray continued on, telling Gramps that the minister said we could gain an audience with the king to ask him to release our nakama if Fairy Tail won the games.

"Screw that, I'm gonna rescue Lucy right now!" Natsu shouted, fire spewing from his mouth. There were heavy bags under his eyes, the only evidence of his weakened state.

"Calm down Natsu, you're still low on magic power." Wendy pleaded.

"You can't just run in there fists blazing Natsu." Happy sighed "Your opponent is _the kingdom_."

"What should we do Master?" Erza said. We all turned to him as he pondered the question.

"We can't act recklessly against the kingdom." Makarov muttered "But they also can't treat their citizens this way. Lucy is basically being used as a hostage to make sure the Eclipse project is cancelled."

"This is ridiculous!" Natsu shouted, suddenly breaking apart his bindings "I'm going in there to- _oof_!"

He was quickly smashed by Makarov's enlarged fist. The old man sighed as he kept the fire mage pinned down. "We all feel the same way boy. However, we can't rush into this without thinking it through first. Don't think that we've simply accepted this as it is. There's still one thing we can do…"

He continued on, telling us his plan to send a team in to rescue Lucy while everyone was distracted with the final day of the games. Natsu insisted on going, with Mira and Wendy being chosen as well. However, that left one spot open on the team.

"Juvia would be glad to fight alongside Gray-sama!" The water mage proclaimed, gripping the man's arm tightly as he deadpanned.

"No, I'm sorry Juvia but it's too risky…" Makarov responded. "You get too distracted when it comes to Gray."

"(Y/n) should be the one to do it." Bickslow said, and I looked at him in surprise.

"What? But I lost on the first day; I'm not good enough to be on the final team!" I insisted, flushing as everyone looked at me.

"That's not true." Laxus frowned "You're strong. Besides, you fought a wizard saint, pretty sure most of us would have fared the same."

"Yes, I think (Y/n) is a good choice." Erza said, grabbing me and pressing my head against her armored chest. I winced at the contact with the cold metal.

Juvia spoke up, smiling "If (Y/n) wants to compete, Juvia doesn't mind. (Y/n) deserves the victory after all that she's done for the guild. Just stay away from Gray-sama!"

The entire group was looking at me hopefully, smiles on their faces. I sighed "Alright, I'll do it. I'll compete."

They cheered, and I was pulled away from Erza by my boyfriend Bickslow. He lifted me up, spinning around "I can't wait to see you and Laxus kick everyone's asses!"

Our plan decided, we all began to get ready to bed. I slept restlessly that night, nervous for the next day. I imagine many of my guild mates felt the same way. We were so close to victory, only one point ahead. I hoped I wouldn't let my teammates down again. And now, there was a sinister plot developing beneath the city. Hopefully, they could rescue Lucy without any problems.

But with Fairy Tail, there was bound to be problems.

* * *

 _A/N: Hope you enjoyed the date! I know it's a bit of a stretch to have the group in the castle kept prisoner overnight, but it just flowed better with the story. I'm trying to focus less on the eclipse gate and more on Reader. Obviously she's not as involved in all that as the core members are._

 _Favorite, follow, review, and I'll see you next chapter!_


	12. Chapter 12

_I got my heart full of hope_

 _I will change everything_

 _No matter what I'm told_

 _Or how impossible it seems_

* * *

I walked into the arena on the final day with the other members of my team, greeted by the spectators with shouts of confusion. They had been hoping to see another fight involving Natsu and the Sabertooth dragon slayers, and everyone wondered why I had taken his place. There was no way to explain what had happened, so we simply ignored the shouting as we waited to begin. Eventually, Mato came onto the field for the last time to speak. The final event was explained to everyone before we were released.

We were then led into the city, to a fountain that was Fairy Tail's designated starting point. I glanced down at my outfit, fidgeting nervously. I wore a black hood-less cloak that had sleeves ending at my elbows, over a (f/c) tank top and black shorts. My fishnet tights were held up by thick black garters and I had my trusty pair of boots on my feet. It was an intricate outfit, but fitting for this final fight. I checked over it again, making sure everything was in place. In reality, I was trying to distract myself from my racing thoughts. We would have to fight everybody else throughout the city of Crocus in this battle.

 _I really hope I don't run into Jura._

All morning I felt restless, worried about what would happen. Mavis had gone through with us in depth her strategy for the event. It was confusing, being that she wanted us to sit and wait for a while before starting. However, I trusted her to make the right call. Bickslow and Laxus spent most of the morning with me, helping me relax and prepare. I was so grateful for them, especially since Laxus was competing himself. He assured me everything would go fine, and that he'd take out everyone he had to for us to win. The declaration had made me giggle; his face had been so serious. Still, I really worried about what would happen if I ran into Jura again. Even Mavis had admitted that she was clueless as to what we should do about him.

"Listen up." Erza said as it grew close to the time for us to begin "We have no choice but to win. To get Lucy back in case the others fail!"

"Yes, but don't forget," Gray said, grinning "We have another reason for winning too."

"We've gotta win for everyone in the guild who struggled while we were gone for seven years." Laxus continued, looking directly at me as he caressed my cheek.

"And I'm gonna show you guys just how hard I worked for this." I smirked, feeling much more confident with everyone surrounding me. This group of mages was incredible, and together we were unstoppable.

The gong sounded, signaling the start of the final event. We all nodded to each other, and I stood beside Laxus as we carried out the first master's plan. None of us moved from our starting position, and I heard the the announcers voicing their confusion. Nobody knew about this tactic except for the five of us and Mavis. Not even Makarov or the guild knew, and they were all confused on what was going on. I closed my eyes, blocking out everything as I began to meditate. The other four closed their eyes well, and we stood in silence. I used this time to mentally prepare, going over everything Mavis had prophesied and what I needed to do. Laxus stood next to me, his hand barely brushing my arm in a silent gesture of comfort.

I tried my best to block out the announcer's, but it was irritating to hear about all the scores going up while ours stayed still. I longed to get out there and fight, but we had to follow Mavis's directions. She insisted we remain calm and trust her, since she was a master tactician. We had all been surprised to hear about her exploits during her time on Earthland. However, after what she told us, there was no doubting her skill. With her guidance, we would win this event and the Grand Magic Games.

After what felt like forever, we heard Mavis instructing us to begin Operation Fairy Star. I opened my eyes, and we all immediately took off running. I looked over to Laxus and nodded to him as we left each other. He grinned back, his sharp canines glinting as he grit his teeth in determination. Mavis continued giving each of us different instructions, and I dodged as an attack from Rufus came flying from the sky and crashing down next to me. It was the same tactic he had used the first day, and this time it did not hit any targets besides Laxus, who was impervious to the lightning. He simply absorbed it, using it as a power up. Although I used lightning and had some resilience to it, there was no way I could take a direct hit without it causing some damage.

Erza, Gajeel and Gray all came into contact with enemy players at this point, and easily defeated them. We were now tied with Sabertooth. I slowed down, hanging back to keep an eye out for any stray opponents. The rest of my team moved into their positions. According to Mavis, Gray would soon begin his fight with Rufus. She had warned him that she wasn't sure he could win, but he insisted on trying anyway.

"Good luck Gray." I muttered, continuing to walk along the streets. The battles continued on, and I silently cheered when they finally announced that Gray had beaten the Sabertooth mage. Now it was only a matter of time before those bastards fell.

By this time, Mavis had told me I would be coming into contact with someone. She said it was most likely Sherria. It was going to be somewhat difficult to defeat her, especially since she could heal herself. I reached the point that I was told to be at, and barely had to wait a second before I felt the presence of the small mage. She attacked swiftly, and I turned towards her as her blacks wind came barreling down. I easily avoided it and began to formulate a strategy.

Wind and earth attacks would be useless against her, so I would have to use mostly lightning, water, and fire based storm attacks. She probably knew how to counteract any ice storms, being that she was in the same guild as Lyon. The god slayer quickly sent another wind attack my way and I braced myself against it.

As it cleared, I moved to strike using my teleportation. I appeared behind her, using a kick to smash her out of the air and into the ground. Briefly, I heard the announcement of Erza's fight with Kagura. It was not what Mavis had predicted, but I wasn't worried. Erza was a powerful opponent who could triumph over the Mermaid Heel mage. I focused back on my fight with the god slayer, seeing her stand and quickly heal up.

"Damn, that's gonna get annoying." I muttered as I planted my feet firmly on the ground. The announcers continued shouting, and I could only focus on my fight as they spoke of the other battles going on. Gajeel and Rogue clashed as Minerva joined Erza and Kagura.

The small mage finished her healing, and I bit my lip. I would have to outlast her in magic power, or defeat her with one devastating blow. I wasn't sure how well my storm magic would fare against her, so I opted for the first option. I would continue getting Sherria to use magic on attacks and healing until she ran out. With my second origin, I believed it was the best choice. I could outlast her.

We continued trading blows, until I heard Laxus's name spoken by the announcers. It caught my attention instantly, I was curious to hear what was happening. Sherria used my momentary distraction and ran at me, using her Sky God's Dance spell and knocking me into a nearby building. The air left my lungs in a whoosh, and I groaned as I dropped to the ground, cursing myself. _How stupid was I that I left myself open to attack just because I heard my boyfriend's name?_

"You're getting distracted!" She giggled "Is there something going on with you and _Laxus_?"

"That's not really important." I frowned as I stood back up. My ribs felt bruised, and I ached all over. That girl had some real power behind her attacks.

I vaguely heard them mention Orga, and not long after the two men traded their first blow, I heard Jura's name as well. From my location, I could feel their strong magical energy and hear the loud explosions. My boyfriend's magic power sent my heart racing, but also reminded me about my own battle. I trusted Laxus to do what he needed to make sure we would win. I steeled myself to do the same, and focused back on Sherria. All my guild mates were counting on me to win this. I briefly wondered who was left, and then I saw Lyon walking down the street we were on.

"Awh, would you look at this!" The white haired ice mage grinned "(Y/n), you look so cute! I remember when you used to be Sherria's size!"

He patted her head as he reached her side and she pouted "I'm not just a little kid!"

"Dammit." I muttered as I watched the two begin to argue. Two of the strongest Lamia Scale members were now standing before me. I wasn't sure I could beat both of them at the same time. Mavis hadn't said anything about me fighting Lyon. However, I was determined to win and I'd fight as hard as I could to prevail.

As I began thinking of what I should do, I felt someone come up behind me. I glanced back and saw Gray, shirtless and looking a bit beat up. I was so relieved to see him, despite his disheveled appearance "Gray! Congrats on your fight."

He grinned "Thanks."

"Well would you look at that!" Lyon said as he noticed the other ice mage "What's wrong Gray? You look a bit worn out."

"I just had some minor business to take care of." Gray responded, before he turned back to me "Let's take them both out (Y/n). It'll be easy if we work together."

I felt shivers run down my spine when I heard someone cursing my name, and realized it was Juvia. _How in the world am I able to sense her from this far away?_ Shaking off the weird feeling, I nodded to Gray. "Right!"

We attacked, Gray using his ice magic as I summoned a tsunami. He froze large chunks of ice and the wave sent them flying towards the other two. They narrowly avoided the attack, and quickly moved to counter.

"I will prove my love to Juvia by defeating you Gray!" Lyon shouted, summoning a large ice serpent that struck my teammate.

With his back turned, I quickly moved to attack Lyon with a lightning storm strike. Sherria blocked the spell with her wind and yelled at the older man "Pay attention you idiot! There's two of them ya know!"

"You can take care of (Y/n)!" Lyon said, turning back towards Gray "I have some personal beef with this one!"

Sherria pouted, upset that her teammate had such a one track mind. These two weren't working well together, and we could probably use that to our advantage. Gray locked eyes with me, as though he had read my thoughts. We both nodded, moving together to send another wave of attacks towards both mages. They were once again caught off guard, having been arguing about Lyon's obsession with Juvia. They jumped apart at the last second, and I braced myself as Sherria sent a strong wind attack back at me.

They seemed to finally realize just how serious we were about this fight, and it dragged on as we continued sending powerful attacks back and forth. These two were strong, and I was starting to feel a drain on my magic. My ribs ached painfully from their earlier abuse, and my breathing was labored. Gray stood beside me, looking just as worn out. He grit his teeth "Damn, this is getting annoying!"

"I agree," I responded "We need to figure out something quick!"

Sherria pouted at her teammate, "Lyon, take out (Y/n) so we can focus on one of them! You're stronger than I am, you can easily defeat her. Then, I'll heal you so we can both defeat Gray."

"I'm not interested in fighting (Y/n)!" He responded, "You must do it. I need to focus on Gray, if I defeat him my darling Juvia will fall for me!"

The small god slayer whined "Who cares about her!"

"They're seriously lacking in teamwork" Gray muttered "(Y/n), we need to join forces, do you think we can?"

I faintly heard the shouting of the announcers, and I felt a powerful wave of energy hit me when I heard that Laxus had defeated Jura. It felt amazing to hear the words, and I knew I had to make him proud of me. I turned to Gray, suddenly sure we could beat these two. If my boyfriend could beat a wizard saint, there was no way I would allow myself to be defeated. "Yeah, let's do it!"

He nodded, and we both summoned all the magic power we had, focusing it into our palms. We combined our strongest attacks, clasping our hands together and sending it towards them. The two waves of magic powered swirled rapidly as it bore down on its target. By the time the two Lamia Scale members saw it coming, it was too late. It hit them directly, knocking both mages completely out.

"We did it!" I sighed, completely drained but ecstatic. I realized our hands were still twined, and quickly let go. Juvia was _so_ going to kill me. It was like I could feel her anger from here.

"That was awesome!" Gray responded "Lamia Scale is completely done for, and we're in first!"

"Yeah! I can't wait to see Laxus and congratulate him on beating Jura." I grin. I was hurting all over, especially where my ribs had gotten hit. I felt totally drained of power, but my adrenaline was still keeping me going. "Let's go meet up with everyone. Sounds like Erza's fight is almost done too."

We begin making our way to the team meeting place, listening to the announcers. We moved slowly, both of us feeling pretty tired and looking awful. My cloak had long since been torn apart, leaving me in just my tattered shirt and shorts. My tank top had huge tears in it, and so did my tights. I pouted when I realized this was my favorite pair. _I should have known better_. It had been a tough day, but the end was in sight. When we're a block away, we hear them announce Erza as the winner. Gray and I simply grin, knowing she would prevail.

"Who's left?" Gray asks, and I shrug, unable to remember everyone that had been defeated. By now, most of the guilds had been completely knocked out of the tournament. There couldn't be many opponents left. However, anyone who hadn't been defeated yet were definitely strong mages.

We turn the corner to see Laxus and Gajeel, both men slumped against a wall. They barely look up as we approach. Their fights had been tough, and probably more tiring than my fight with Sherria and Lyon. I smile brightly at my boyfriend, who simply smirks.

"I'm so glad I never fought you during training babe," I giggled, pressing myself gently against his chest and greeting him with a kiss. His shirt was torn completely open, leaving his skin bare. I couldn't resist lightly trailing my hands over his chest, careful of his injuries. "I'd probably be in the infirmary for a week."

He winked "Told ya I would take care of it."

"Gi-hi-hi, all we gotta do is take out one more person." Gajeel grunts. His hair is sticking up wildly and he looks like he's about to collapse.

"Who?" I ask, pulling away from Laxus.

"Sting." Erza spoke, having suddenly joined us. She was barely walking, her ankle red and swollen as she used a wooden stick to help her stay up. "And I'm afraid we're all pretty injured."

"You can say that again." Gray muttered, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly "I barely have any magic power left."

"That bastard probably planned this." Laxus sighed "He waited until he could over power whoever was left, knowing they'd be worn out."

"That doesn't matter. We can do it." I said, "No matter how tired or sore I feel, I'll keep fighting. And I know, with you guys there fighting with me, there's no way we can lose."

They grinned, and as the sun began to set, Sting sent out a flare to lead us to him. We all moved slowly, our bodies weary. It would be a fierce battle, but there was no way we could come this far and not prevail. No matter what it took, Fairy Tail would win.

We eventually make our way to the Sabertooth mage, who has a cocky smirk on his face as he leans against a fountain. It's dark out, and the area is lit by lacrima lamps. It's the final showdown, and the tension is thick. Sting chuckles as we stop before him "You guys look pretty injured! This is gonna be easy."

"We didn't come here to chit-chat." Gajeel grumbled "Let's get this over with."

"We'll fight you one on one, so pick somebody." Gray said

"Oh yeah? You sure you don't want to try all at once?" Sting chuckled "It'll be boring if we do one on one."

"Don't underestimate us." Erza spoke, gently placing her injured foot down and standing tall. The man's cocky expression wavered, and then he sneered.

"I was trying to give you guys a better chance to win." He shouted "I'm stronger, I can take you out easily. I'll do it for Lector!"

Laxus frowned "You really think you can take all of us by yourself?"

"I know I can!" Sting responded.

"Very well," Erza said, "If you're so determined to see this through, then we'll fight on your terms."

"Alright!" He grinned, and I braced myself for his attack. He summoned his power, bright white light swirling around him.

We stood there, prepared to fight until we could no longer stand. I felt anxious, but there was no way Sting could take all of us. Despite our injuries, I knew that we were stronger together. I would push past the pain and fatigue to finish this fight. The five of us did not waver as Sting's magic power grew, and he focused his gaze on us. However, he hesitated. The white light around him suddenly disappeared and he grit his teeth in frustration. His feet moved just barely as he tried to walk forward, but he ended up falling to his knees instead.

"I can't do it… I can't beat you guys," He muttered, pounding his fist into the ground "Dammit. I surrender!"

My heart skipped a beat at his words. It took me a moment to realize just what had happened. Sting was giving up, and there was nobody left to fight. Suddenly, I heard a roar of shouts from the stadium across town as Fairy Tail was crowned the victor of the Grand Magic Games. "No way!"

I looked over to my comrades, who were all grinning widely "We did it! We won!"

I felt tears of happiness spring to my eyes, and I jumped into Laxus's arms. He grunted at the rough treatment, but hugged me back fiercely. After all the years of defeat, Fairy Tail had finally prevailed. Not only that, but I had gotten a spot in the final team. I'd been a part of this victory. It was the most incredible feeling. I continued to cry tears of joy as Laxus laughed, hugging me into his side.

I look over to Erza, who walked up to Sting and softly asked, "Why did you back down?"

"I don't know..." He muttered, tears gathering in his eyes "I was so sure I could beat you guys. That's all I had to do, and I could see Lector again. But I froze up. I felt like maybe I wasn't good enough. I lost hope… And now I'll never get to see him again…"

"That's not true." Erza said, and turned as her friend Millianna walked up to us. She had a small cat in her arms that I immediately recognized as being Sting's exceed.

He looked up, his eyes going wide. Lector's eyes fluttered opened, and he smiled when he saw his friend. "Sting!"

"Lector!" The slayer shouted, standing up and running towards his exceed. We all watched, smiling at the tender moment as Lector jumped into the man's arms. "You're okay!"

Their reunion was tearful, but extremely heartwarming. I had always seen Sting as a cocky jerk, but he really had a soft spot when it came to his exceed. We all turned away, letting them have their moment in piece to talk.

"Man those cheers are so loud." Gray smirked.

"Yeah, all this noise is starting to make my wounds hurt!" Gajeel grumbled, and I rolled my eyes.

"Awh don't be like that! We won!"

Erza grinned "Yes, these are cheers of celebration. I bet Master is beside himself with happiness right now."

"More importantly," Laxus said, putting his arm around me "This makes up for all those seven years our nakama had to suffer through."

I looked up to him, smiling tearfully "Yeah. I'm so happy I could be a part of it."

"Although, it's kind of strange not having Natsu around hollering and making noise." Erza mentioned "Have any of you guys seen their signal flare yet?"

"No, but I've been keeping an eye out for it the whole time." Laxus said "Well, except when Jura knocked me flat."

I giggled "I haven't seen it either."

"Knowing Natsu," Gray sighed "He probably forgot to light it off."

"I hope so..." Erza muttered, and we all went quiet. I was sure my guild mates were starting to feel worried, just like me. Surely they would be okay, but it was taking the rescue group an awfully long time.

All of a sudden, Sting spoke up, breaking the silence "Tell me something…"

"What?!" Gajeel growled, getting into the man's face "You got a problem, punk?"

"Sorry, it's just…" He looked away "Where was Natsu? Why wasn't he in the fight today?"

Gajeel stood back, glancing at the rest of us. We had no explanation to give him. It was too difficult to explain. How did you tell a person about the royal military and their plan to travel back in time to defeat the greatest dark wizard ever? And then go on to say one of your member's was being held hostage in the castle. There was no way. So, we stayed quiet.

"What's the matter?" Lector asked, frowning "Is Natsu hurt, is he gonna be okay?"

"He's fine; he just had some things to take care of." I offered, feeling bad that these two were genuinely worried and we couldn't tell them anything.

"We should probably get back to everyone." Laxus said, and with that we left. Sting simply stood and watched us as we walked away.

There was tension in the air despite our victory. We were all grateful for our win, but nobody had heard from the rescue group. There was no telling what happened. Had they been captured? I couldn't shake the odd sense of foreboding as we made our way to the inn. Porlyusica was waiting for us there, prepared to dress our wounds after we all showered and cleaned up. I relished the hot water as it soaked into my sore muscles. Afterwards, I glanced at myself in the bathroom mirror. My bruised ribs had not yet started to show, but I knew they'd be bad in the morning. With a sigh, I slowly got dressed and left the bathroom. Everyone else had finished with their showers as well. We were once again gathered in the team room, and there was medical supplies laid everywhere.

"Let's get this over with!" Porlyusica sneered "You guys stink."

"We literally all just finished showering." Gray grumbled, walking around in his boxers.

I laughed as he narrowly avoided a bottle of medicine thrown his way as the woman shouted at him to put clothes on. I picked up some supplies and made my way to Laxus, who was leaning languidly against a dresser. Everyone was injured, so I wanted to help out and dress my boyfriend's wounds as our guild's healer went to work on Erza first. She definitely had the worst injuries of everyone, especially her ankle. Laxus tried to refuse my help, wanting to make sure I got taken care of, but I quickly stopped him. My wounds were not nearly as bad as his. So, he stood towering over me with a grumpy expression as I gently rubbed salve on his wounds. I tried not to blush at his incredible physique as I finished wrapping gauze around his midsection.

"There, all better." I grinned, proud of my work. He was covered in bandages, and I made sure they were wrapped well so they wouldn't come loose.

"Not until you kiss it better." Laxus muttered. He tried for a serious expression, but it looked more cute to me than anything.

I giggled, leaning in to kiss him as the other men in the room groaned their disgust. Laxus zapped them, quickly shutting them up as he pressed his lips against mine. Before dating, I never would have expected Laxus to be the affectionate person he was, but I loved it. He pulled back, gently putting his hands on my waist and lifting me up onto the dresser he'd been leaning against. He grabbed the bottle of healing salve and silently went to work on my cuts. I winced, trying to endure the sting.

The Thunder Legion entered the room then, heading straight towards us. I waved to them as Laxus grabbed the gauze and began wrapping it around my injuries. "Hey guys!"

"You all were so amazing!" Evergreen said, hopping up onto the dresser beside me before Bickslow could. "Congratulations!"

The seith mage pouted "Hey, I was gonna sit next to (Y/n)."

The fairy mage stuck her tongue out at him as Freed spoke "Laxus, I am so honored to be in your presence after that extraordinary display! You truly are the most incredible mage I've ever known!"

We laughed as Freed teared up, and Laxus rolled his eyes. I talked excitedly with the Thunder Legion as Laxus quietly finished tending to my injuries. Afterwards, I stood up carefully, feeling incredibly sore. Bickslow held me, helping me keep upright as we left the room to join everyone downstairs. There was a bunch of noise, all the guild members talking joyfully about our victory. At the same time, some of us felt unease as the night grew late and the rescue team had _still_ not returned with Lucy. They must have gotten captured, which meant we'd have to talk with the king to have them released.

After awhile of intense celebration, someone arrived dressed in royal military gear requesting the entire guild's presence immediately for an urgent message from the king. We all stared in confusion as the man left, and Makarov sighed. He put down the mug of ale he was drinking from and stood "Well, I suppose we can't refuse the king."

I looked over to Laxus, who had a somber expression. Nothing like this had ever happened before, and there was no telling why the king wanted to speak with us. I grabbed his hand, intertwining our fingers, and he looked over at me. The corner of his mouth turned up in a grin and he squeezed my hand. Bickslow grabbed my other hand, smiling at us both. The small gesture helped ease my anxiety a bit about what was about to occur. "Let's go."

They nodded, and we carefully made our way to the Crystal Plaza that was at the very center of Crocus. There were many other guilds already gathered, and we made our way to the front. The king stood on a large podium, looking troubled. He was surrounded by guards standing at attention, all of whom were dressed to the nines in battle gear. The crowd quieted as he began to talk.

"Thank you all for coming." He said, his voice loud and grim "I hate to spoil the mood after the wonderful display of wizardry we witness today, but I'm afraid this city, the heart of Fiore, may soon find itself in the claws of a dragon horde."

The crowd began buzzing, voicing their confusion and doubt. I looked over at my boyfriends "Wait, how is that possible? I thought the dragons had all disappeared."

Laxus shrugged, scowling "No idea."

"Last time we fought against a dragon, we lost seven years…" Bickslow muttered.

I bit my lip in worry as the king spoke up again,

"As we speak, a large scale counterattack is being prepared at the Castle. The Eclipse Cannon!" Near me, I saw Gajeel, Erza, and Gray stiffen in shock. That name was similar to the plan that got Lucy locked up. What were they going to accomplish with it? "We will use it to take out the dragons, all 10,000 of them at once!"

"10,000?" Bickslow gaped, his babies repeating the word. "There's no way they expect to be able to take that many out with one attack."

"That's probably why they gathered all the guilds together. To take out whatever's left." Laxus responded with a sigh. I stayed silent, the fear gripping me tightly and making me unable to speak. How could we hope to take on any dragons in our condition?

"Regrettably, due to the sheer number of them, we expect at least 100 of these beasts to survive the blast. And that is why I am asking you all for your help! Guild wizards of Fiore, please join us in our fight against these dragons. You're the only hope we have…" He began to cry, hiding his face in shame "I beg you… Don't let this country fall to ruin!"

I stood there, shocked, as the crowd stayed silent for a moment before everyone began shouting excitedly. They all seemed completely determined to fight, and I shook my head. _How could I have ever doubted our strength?_ Laxus looked over at me, grinning as he spoke "I guess this is my chance to finally slay some dragons!"

The king looked over the crowd, tears falling as he thanked everyone profusely. Erza turned angrily to one of the guards nearby and the poor guy nearly fainted, "Some of our comrades have been captured by the royal army and are in the castle. We'll be needing their help."

"Don't worry ma'am; we were all informed of their safety." He mumbled, bowing deeply "They've joined Princess Hisui at the gate."

"Awesome." Gajeel said, pounding his fist into his palm "I can't wait to start rampaging!"

I giggled. It seemed like all slayers were excited at the prospect of letting loose and fighting dragons. However, they were covered in bandages, and I hoped everyone would be okay.

* * *

 _A/N: And that commences the end of the Grand Magic Games, and the beginning of the fight to save the future of Fiore. How will Reader fare? Dun dun duunnnn_

 _Seriously, I'm so excited for the next chapter. I may update sooner than I usually do, haha!_

 _Let me know what you think, and I'll see you in chapter 13!_


	13. Chapter 13

_For one more day, I'm not afraid to fall_

 _For one more day, we try to save it all_

* * *

The guards moved to prepare for battle, and a plan was formulated as the royal healers and Sherria went around healing those that needed it. I refused when asked, feeling as though my wounds were not nearly as bad as some of the other mages. Laxus glared at me when I insisted they heal him instead.

"I'll be fine." I told him, ignoring his heated look.

"No, _I'll_ be fine." He growled "I don't want you getting hurt out there, it's gonna be rough."

"I agree." Bickslow says "I can tell you're exhausted (Y/n). You should take the chance for some healing."

I shook my head as the healers moved on, tending to other people. "Too late. There are people who need it more than me. C'mon guys, don't you have faith in me? I'm strong enough to take care of myself."

They both frown, and Bickslow eventually sighs "Fine, but I'm not leaving your side!"

Just then, Evergreen and Freed joined the three of us. They were smiling, looking determined. Evergreen put her arm around my back as she looked at everyone "No, none of us are. We're a team, and we'll fight together until the end!"

My heart sores at her declaration, feeling so lucky to have this wonderful group of mages by my side. The clock strikes midnight, and we grow quiet. There was no telling what would happen now, all we had to do was wait. Fairy Tail had been assigned to this area, while all the other guilds had left and were waiting on standby in other spots around the city. I took a moment to reflect back on all the time we'd spent competing with each other in the games. Now that it was over, there were no rivalries. We were all together, about to fight for our lives and our future. I hoped everyone would come out of this okay.

"Hm, I'm not sure this moon is a good omen…" Freed spoke, and we all looked up to see what he was staring at. A lunar eclipse had started, bathing the distant object in a red light.

Suddenly, we heard thunderous footsteps that shook the earth beneath us. I gripped Evergreen, both of us trying to keep our balance as we heard an immense roar. The noise grew closer and closer until I saw a large beast walking within the city. It was gray, with giant wings and a purple underbelly. It was bigger than anything I'd ever seen before and I gasped "We're supposed to be fighting over a hundred of those?!"

"How can they possibly take out a few of those, let alone thousands of them?!" Gray shouted.

I couldn't look away as even more of them showed up, their roars crumbling nearby structures. The dragons all looked completely different, but there was no denying that these creatures were strong. Makarov shouted at us to spread out, and I barely heard him over the dragons' roars. Laxus grabbed my arm as the beasts took to the air, the resulting shock-wave nearly knocking us all over. We dodged debris as we spread away from our guild mates, the five of us making sure to stay somewhat close together.

The beasts flew higher, and I watched as they all congregated near the castle, flying in circles around the building. We had no idea what was happening. At this point there were only seven dragons total, which nowhere near the amount we expected. However, even fighting this many seemed to be a daunting task. Before we knew it, they were all flying outwards, going to different directions in the city.

"They're heading straight for all the guilds!" I realized, and we watched as a beast cloaked entirely in flames came barreling towards us.

"That's a dragon?!" Droy cried.

"It's covered in fire!" I heard someone else say, and I watched with fear in my heart as the beast landed in front of us.

"Let's take it down!" Makarov shouted, prompting everyone to yell in agreement "Just follow my lead, and aim for its feet!"

The small man took off running, and we all followed closely behind him. We prepared to attack, and the dragon spoke "I am the one known as Atlas Flame. Prepare to taste my hellfire, puny humans!"

A large ball of magic energy formed as the dragon opened its mouth, shooting a powerful beam at us when he roared. It struck the ground, causing a blast that sent people flying. Laxus grabbed me, covering me and keeping us grounded. My heart beat wildly in my chest, having never experienced such a powerful force. Even after all my training, I felt powerless against the sheer strength of this beast. Left to my own devices, I surely would have been knocked down by the blast. I watched helplessly beneath Laxus's coat as my friends were thrown backwards. Laxus was so protective, and he was surely worried about me, but I felt dismayed at his constant protection of me. Did he think I was unable to take care of myself? I supposed in this case, I really was.

"Stay strong children!" Makarov shouted, bracing himself firmly against the wave of magic. Laxus released me as the force of the blast subsided, and I ran over to make sure the Thunder Legion was okay. They got up, quickly gathering their bearings.

"Jeez, that thing is strong!" Bickslow said, leaning on me and cradling his head as I checked him for injuries "I sure am glad I wear this armor!"

I sighed, relieved to see them all looking fine, if not a little shaken. I held onto Bickslow as I brought my gaze back over to the dragon. It was now rampaging through the city, destroying buildings and wreaking havoc. "This is bad."

"Has the city been fully evacuated?" Erza asked as we all regrouped.

"Yes. They're safe, the Royal Army is protecting them." Macao responded.

"Good, then we don't have to worry about letting loose!" Gajeel cackled.

"Letting loose is manly!" Elfman shouted, prompting Evergreen to roll her eyes. I couldn't help but smile at the group. They were so positive about everything.

The beast came back our way, and we readied ourselves to fight. I felt my magic power swirling inside me, nearly recovered. I would do anything to ensure we made it through this, and I glanced over at my boyfriends. Bickslow was grinning madly, his babies bobbing around excitedly. Laxus looked eager to fight as well. As I looked to him, I realized that he was our best hope for defeating this beast, being a dragon slayer. Above everything, I knew I had to make sure he didn't run out of power. I'd empty my magic containers if it meant giving him fuel to continue fighting.

"Laxus" I grabbed his coat sleeve and he looked down at me. I couldn't help faltering under his intense gaze. He was so incredible, and as I stared at him I knew that I was falling for him, harder than ever. "I... If you ever find yourself feeling weak, I can use my lightning to help you restore power, okay?"

"Thanks, but don't worry about me." He grinned, kissing me "Trust in my strength."

I looked away, hiding my flushed face. I'd nearly told him I loved him, but this wasn't the time or place for that. We had to make it through this fight, and he was our best chance for victory. This was no time to be distraction him with declarations of love. I knew he wouldn't so easily accept my help, but I was determined to do it no matter how much he protested. I simply nodded, leaning into Bickslow when he came up behind me. I felt so safe with them both here and I smiled.

"After this, I'm taking us on a nice relaxing date."

The two men chuckled, and we watched as Juvia and Gray decided they'd attack the beast together. Being that they controlled water and ice, their attack should be super effective against fire. They combined their magic, sending the two waves at the dragon and hitting it directly. It caused a large cloud of steam and smoke, and we waited for it to clear. Everyone gasped when we saw it did nothing.

"But how?!" Juvia cried "We combined our burning passion for each other and hit it with our full magic power!"

Gray deadpanned as the water mage tightly gripped his hand. The dragon moved closer and spoke "Foolish creatures. My hellfire consumes all that stands before me!"

It reared back, sending a pillar of fire at us. Freed ran forward, pulling out his rapier "I'll block his attack with my runes!"

He quickly drew up a shield, meeting the blast halfway. His shield holds for a moment before giving way, and the blast hit those of us up front hard. We were sent flying back, and I crossed my arms to cover my face from the heat. I crashed into the ground hard, rolling and scraping my exposed skin roughly against the stone street.

"It blasted through Freed's spell like it was nothing!" Bickslow grunted as we all stood up again.

I winced, feeling sharp pain in my side and I realized my rib had cracked. It had gotten hit hard during my earlier battle with Sherria, and that blast had only made it worse.. _Dammit._ _This is bad._ If I kept hitting the area, the bones would eventually break. I really needed to be careful. That was, unfortunately, kind of hard to do when battling a _fucking_ _dragon_. And this was barely just beginning...

"This thing is crazy." I said, shaking the dirt off my torn clothing. I had changed out of my earlier outfit, and now the clothes I wore were ripped again. "There's no way we can do this."

"Don't lose hope!" Erza said "We have to keep fighting."

Everybody stood, nodding at her statement. The dragon, Atlas Flame, laughed "You're all still standing after that roasting huh? You must be wizards."

"You're damn right we are!" Makarov growled, having walked forward to join us. We gaped in shock as he summoned his magic, transforming himself and growing in size.

"Good idea." Macao called "Fight a monster with a monster."

"All right, that's the way to do it!" Wakaba chuckled "Give them a good old fashioned beat down Gramps!"

"Wow, it's been awhile since I've seen this!"

I grin slightly at Romeo's words, watching as the small man grew to match the towering frame of the dragon. His power swirled around him as he faced the beast.

"Fairy Tail is no ordinary group of wizards!" Gramps shouted, his voice deep and thunderous "The power we share is unlike any other!"

He ran at the dragon, throwing a powerful punch directly at it. The force of it sent a huge gust of wind backwards, and we marveled at the incredible magic of our guild master. However, it did nothing to the dragon, and I couldn't believe it. Not even he could faze Atlas Flame.

"There's is nothing you can do!" The dragon rumbled "Humans will never beat a dragon!"

It charged, and I watched in horror as Gramps blocked him, taking his fiery form head on. He was pushed back, and we all shouted as the flames flew at us, their heat burning and the force knocking us over. I cradled my side as we stood again and Makarov shrunk back down, breathing heavily.

"Are you okay old man?" Bickslow shouted as we walked up to the small man.

"Did it hurt you?" Romeo asked.

He waved us off "I'm fine, just a little burnt is all!"

"If not even Master can stop it, I don't think the rest of us have a chance..." Juvia muttered.

"There's got to be something we can do!" Freed shouted desperately.

"First Master, you're good with strategies." Gray said, turning back to address the woman who was keeping Asuka safe. "What should we do?"

She nodded, analyzing the situation for a moment before speaking. "There are seven dragons. I think the plan should be obvious at this point…"

"What do you mean?" Erza said.

Just then, we heard the voice of Natsu shouting from one of the dragons above. "Can everybody hear me? Dragon slayer magic can take these guys down! You guys, we've got seven slayers here! One for each dragon! Our magic exists for this very reason, we were born for this."

I look over to Gajeel and Laxus, who both grinned widely as Natsu shouted "Let's use our power, and slay some fucking dragons!"

Everyone shouts in agreement, looking to the two slayers. After a moment, Gajeel frowns "Wait, seven slayers? That idiot can't count."

Erza's eyes go wide and she mutters, "Cobra…"

Before anyone has the chance to question her, Lisanna shouts "What are those?!"

We look to where she's pointing, and we see the largest dragon roar as it begins dropping large egg-shaped objects from above. They come barreling towards us, and we dodge when they crash into the ground, sending debris and dirt flying.

"Dragon eggs?" Freed says, and we watch in horror as they begin hatching. Dragon-like creatures emerge from the shells, and suddenly we have hundreds of them surrounding us.

"There's a whole army of them!" Elfman says, standing next to Lisanna protectively.

"This isn't good." Romeo said "Dealing with one dragon was hard enough!"

Suddenly, I feel the pressure of Laxus's lightning, and look over to see him running at Atlas Flame. He sends a powerful punch at the fire dragon, knocking him back. I run towards him, in awe of my boyfriend's power and also worried about his extensive injuries. "Laxus!"

"Get it together you guys!" He growls "We've got dragons to slay. You can take care of the little ones; I'll handle this guy myself."

"You can't do it alone!" Romeo shouts, and before anyone can respond I feel the Thunder Legion step up beside me.

"He isn't alone." Freed says, his face set in determination.

"The Thunder Legion is always by his side!" Evergreen grins, putting her arm around my waist. I gape at them, surprised by their devotion. I begin to realize now what their team was about. It wasn't just a Laxus fan club. It was a group of outcasts, that had become loyal friends brought together by their difficult upbringings and strange magics. That, also paired with their mutual love and respect for a man who seemed so cold and closed off but actually cared for his friends fiercely.

"That's right baby!" Bickslow shouted, his babies repeating "That's right!" cheerfully. "We can handle anything life throws at us!"

I nodded, steeling my reserve. There was nothing left to do but fight as much as I could alongside my friends. I swore I'd help Laxus in any way, and now was my chance. "Right! We've got this, no problem."

"The rest of you keep away! Only dragon slayers will be able to defeat these large ones." Mavis instructed as we moved to flank Laxus. "Good luck you guys! Gajeel, find another target. Not all the guilds have dragon slayers, so go help them. The rest of you, focus on the little ones!"

Everyone began to move into position, and I watched as Elfman walked by Evergreen, telling her to be careful. She huffed, pretending to be offended "As if I need you to tell me that."

He grinned, walking away without another word. She sighed, biting her lip and trying to resist the urge to look back at him. Evergreen was so clueless and stubborn, and I hoped she wouldn't regret her harsh words towards the man. I turned back to the fight going on in front of me, trusting everyone would stay safe. The monster slowly made its way towards us, and I felt sweat drip down my face from the heat. Bickslow looked at me, now wearing the same nervous expression as myself. We both glanced to our boyfriend Laxus, who was scowling at the dragon.

"Alright guys, let's give this bastard everything we've got!" Laxus says.

"Right!" We all shout, summoning our magic and sending a barrage of spells at the beast. He roars in anger, swiping his tail at us. Debris from nearby buildings goes flying as his tail knocks down everything in its path. The Thunder Legion takes to the air, using their individual magics to dodge. I dive to the side, using a rock barrier to stop the debris from hitting me. Laxus runs towards Atlas Flame while he's distracted, using his lightning dragon's iron fist to attack. It connects with the dragon's chest, and the Thunder Legion returns to the ground as Laxus continues to attack the beast.

"Your magic is nothing compared to my flames, stupid creature!" Atlas Flame laughed, swiping at Laxus and nearly hitting him "I will destroy you!"

"Man this bastard is annoying." Laxus growls, lightning sparking off his body as he falls back and stands beside me. The monster summons a roar, aiming it directly at us. We quickly jump back as a burst of energy barrels towards us, blasting apart the ground. I use my own runes to block the beam, but it breaks them apart quicker than Freed's, and Laxus and I are sent flying back. He manages to keep his footing as he lands, catching me in his arms. The jostling irritates my cracked ribs and I inhale sharply to avoid crying out in pain. Laxus looks at me in worry. "Are you okay (Y/n)?"

"I'm fine." I grit my teeth in frustration as he sets me down and the Thunder Legion groups back up with us. "Let's see how this guy does when I snuff out his fire with my storm magic!"

I move forward, crossing my arms in front of me and summoning a hurricane. Up until now I'd only used smaller spells, but there was no use holding back. The wind kicks up, water whipping through the air as my storm gathers strength. I focus on making it as powerful as I can, and large clouds gather above the dragon. I release it all at once, sending it roaring directly at the beast. The explosion covers the entire area, and eventually clears to show that his flames have barely been affected. I groaned in dismay; that attack had used quite a bit of magic power. "Well fuck. What do we do?"

"Don't worry, I've got an idea." Laxus said, and both my boyfriends moved to stand beside me.

"We gotta work together Stormy." Bickslow chuckled "That's what the Thunder Legion does best."

"Everyone get ready!" Laxus commanded. "Freed and Evergreen, spread out and gain some height. Bickslow, send your totems into the sky and (Y/n), aim for his belly. We're going to hit him from all sides. Let's all do it together, alright?!"

We all nod before moving into position. Freed uses his wings to gain a high vantage point, and Atlas Flame instantly directs his attention to the rune mage. He dodges the beast's swinging tail and activates his eye magic, using his Dark Ecriture as we all summon our own magic. Evergreen, using her fairy wings to fly around the opposite side, begins shooting her Fairy Machine gun. I create a large ice storm, blasting it directly at the dragon's chest and belly. Bickslow uses his baryon formation, his babies attacking from above as Laxus moves next to me, shooting his lightning dragon roar at the beast's face. The creature is blasted with our magic, and the force creates a huge cloud.

"How does it feel to get hit by everything at once?" Laxus grins, but the dragon merely laughs.

"I don't feel a thing!" The smoke clears to show that once again, Atlas Flame is unaffected. "My hellfire burns through magic!"

"Dammit, this thing is strong." I mutter as the dragon roars, crumbling any structures still standing nearby.

"You've got bad chemistry with this one Laxus," Freed says as he and Ever return to our side. "Lightning is useless against flames…"

"Too bad there isn't a water dragon slayer." Evergreen mutters, her brows furrowed in frustration.

"We've got a fire dragon slayer floating overhead." Bickslow laughs, pointing into the sky. We look up to see Natsu being carried above us by Happy, much to our shock. The exceed drops the slayer, sending him falling towards Atlas Flame. The boy begins laughing madly as he free-falls.

"Natsu, what're you doing?" Laxus shouts.

The pink haired boy cackles excitedly as he lands on the flame dragon, ignoring Laxus. "I found you, fire dragon!"

"Who are you?!" Atlas Flame growls, and Natsu introduces himself before quickly chomping down on the beast.

"What the hell?" Laxus gapes, and we all face-palm.

"This is insane." I can't help but laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of this situation.

Happy floats over to us, chuckling "What else can you expect from a guy who thinks with his stomach?"

We all watch as the dragon shouts in rage, taking off into the air to try and shake Natsu from his back. The slayer continues to eat the fire, despite Atlas Flame's efforts.

"What the hell are you trying to do, Natsu?!" Laxus yells.

"What does it look like? I'm getting this guy in my belly!" He responds between mouthfuls of flame. "You guys should go help Wendy at the castle! She needs back up."

I gasp, having forgotten about the small girl. I look over to Laxus who's frowning. "He's right. She may be a dragon slayer, but she's still young."

"She could be in trouble if she's on her own." Evergreen says worriedly.

"Tch," Laxus crossed his arms "Fine, let's go. You've got this, right Natsu?"

"Yeah, I'm gonna get more powerful by eating this guy!" He shouted back before shoveling more flames into his mouth.

"Alright, then let's hurry." Laxus said, turning to us "To the palace, I guess."

We took off running, Happy following us closely. I ran beside Laxus and Bickslow, trying to power through my fatigue. I had nearly forgotten how exhausted I was in the heat of battle, but running made everything even worse. My ribs shifted with every labored breath. Laxus glanced over at me, his expression worried "You okay?"

I rolled my eyes as Bickslow looked over at me too "I'm fine you two, this ain't nothing!"

The last thing I wanted was for them to fret about me, when they probably weren't feeling great themselves. So, I morphed my face into a blank expression to hide my discomfort as we neared the castle. Wendy and Mirajane were in a heated battle with a large green dragon, and Laxus quickly ran toward them. They stood back when they saw him, relief evident in their faces. We followed, stopping to check on the two women as Laxus continued on towards the dragon.

"Are you two alright?" I asked.

Mira and Wendy nodded, looking fine despite their struggle. I surveyed the area, and was surprised to see Yukino and the other exceeds there, standing with a man in armor and a woman in regal clothing. I quickly did a double take when I realized it was Princess Hisui, and gaped. I couldn't believe she had not been evacuated when the dragons came. We began to move towards them, with Wendy and Mirajane following us.

"Is everyone okay?" Freed asked when we reached the group next to the Eclipse Gate. They all nodded, watching as Laxus stood in front of the beast, his lightning sparking off his body.

"Oh-ho, more delicious human women!" The dragon rumbled, completely ignoring Laxus in favor of looking at me and Evergreen "I can't wait to strip them of those nasty clothes and taste their yummy flesh!"

I scrunched my face in disgust "What the fuck?"

Mira sweat dropped "You should have seen what happened to Lucy..."

"Kinky." Bickslow chuckled, and I sighed.

I could only imagine what had happened. That girl always lost her clothes.

"Tch. You're done for pervert!" Laxus shouted, aiming a lightning punch at the beast.

"Ha! That cocky attitude will only get you so far, you little insect." The dragon growled, and Laxus quickly continued with a lightning dragon roar. The monster was barely affected, continuing to dodge and attack back. He easily absorbed a lightning attack from Laxus before spreading his wings and sending the lightning shooting outward. It came blasting toward us, and I quickly shielded Wendy as the others did their best to avoid the bolts. Laxus was hit in the chest with the lightning, blasting him out of the air. He fell, grunting as he hit the rocky ground.

"Laxus!" I stood up, running towards him in concern. He was injured, and that blow had to hurt.

"Is that the best you've got?" The dragon chuckled, flying low to the ground "I am the mighty Zirconis, your weak little attacks have no effect on me."

"We'll see about that." Laxus smirked as he began to stand. I quickly grasped his arm as I helped him rise to his feet. He took off his coat, throwing it over my shoulders and cracking his knuckles as he faced Zirconis. "I'm just getting started."

Laxus was panting, his body still covered tightly in bandages. I started to worry that he wouldn't be able to defeat this beast either, and I knew he needed more power. "Laxus! Let me help you!"

"It's fine! Conserve your energy (Y/n)." He said, walking forward. "I can take care of this."

I felt tears of frustration fill my eyes and I grit my teeth. "No! I know you're strong, but you can't do this alone. I want to fight alongside you! But... if you won't let me, then I'll just have to help you another way!"

He turned to me in shock as I quickly summoned a lightning storm. Before he had the chance to stop me, I put as much magic into it as I could before sending it towards him.

"(Y/n)!" Laxus's eyes went wide in dismay, and he scowled as his body began to greedily absorb the power.

I could instantly tell it had given him strength, but felt myself starting to weaken. However, that didn't matter as long as it helped Laxus defeat Zirconis. Bickslow came up behind me as I wobbled on my feet, catching me before I could falter. The Thunder Legion surrounded me, and I grasped tightly onto the fur lined coat sitting on my shoulders. Laxus gave us a meaningful look before turning back to the dragon.

Zirconis laughed "As if a little extra magic is going to do anything against me! You humans are such silly little insects."

Wendy began to move forward, walking past us as she neared the battlefield. She stood beside Laxus, her face set in determination. "If that's not enough, then let's see how you do with two dragon slayers!"

She aimed a wing attack, catching the beast off guard. The wind hit him directly and knocked him sideways. Laxus quickly followed up with his lighting breakdown fist, the large ball of lightning connecting with the dragon's underbelly and sending him crashing into the ground. Zirconis began shouting, angry at what they had done. The Thunder Legion and I quickly moved away, nearing the city. Laxus and Wendy continued to battle the dragon while Mirajane kept watch over Yukino and Princess Hisui near the gate. Hopefully now, the two dragon slayers would be able to defeat Zirconis.

"Are you okay (Y/n)?" Bickslow asked, brushing my hair out of my face.

I brushed his hand away, standing firmly "I'm fine babe, don't worry about me."

"That was very honorable of you (Y/n)." Freed said, clasping his hand over my shoulder as he nodded to me. Evergreen watched me intently, her face a mixture of concern and admiration.

"No, it wasn't." I shook my head in exasperation, watching as Laxus sent giant bolts of lightning toward the dragon. "Laxus needed the power up, and I'd happily empty my magic containers if it meant victory. I did nothing special. Any of us would have done the same for him..."

"Uh, guys," I heard Evergreen say suddenly, breaking me from the fight going on in front of us. She was looking behind, pointing towards the ruins of the city "We've got company!"

"Shit, when did they get here?" Bickslow shouted, as we all turned to see a horde of the small draconic creatures from earlier.

They aimed their jaws at us, shooting off large beams before we even had the chance to move.

"Look out!" Freed shouted, bringing up a rune shield to block the beams. I quickly joined my runes with his to double the strength of the shield. It managed to hold this time, knocking us back just a little.

"Get rid of those things! We can't have them interfering over here!" Laxus shouted, continuing on to assist Wendy in their attack against Zirconis.

"You heard him!" Freed directed the Thunder Legion as I looked back at Laxus in worry. What if he needed more power? "He'll do fine (Y/n), now make sure you don't let him down. We must defeat these beasts."

I nodded, looking to Bickslow for comfort. The seith mage grinned, sticking out his tongue "Let's make him proud, baby!"

His totems got into formation, and we all moved to attack the minions. There was so many of them, and we quickly got to work trying to take them out, also making sure none of them got too close to the others. I used many different ranges of storm types, trying to see what worked best on these monsters. However, it felt like barely anything was working. The Thunder Legion was faring the same as me. We had barely taken half of them down and I was really low on magic power.

"Damn, these things are a pain!" Bickslow huffed, his babies wobbling tiredly in the air.

"There's no end to them." Evergreen pouted, leaning heavily on Freed. We were all growing weary, the massive amounts damage we took beginning to catch up to us.

Still, they continued coming, and we all tried our best to dodge their attacks. Laxus's coat stayed firmly on my shoulders, covering me in his comforting scent. As I moved, I took a moment and glanced over to check on my dragon slayer boyfriend, but soon found myself separated from the Thunder Legion. _Dammit (Y/n), you got distracted again._ I couldn't believe I'd once again put myself in a bad position because I was worried about Laxus. I sighed, focusing back on the group of beasts quickly surrounding me.

"Shit!"

I realized too late the predicament I was in, and I narrowly evaded a laser attack from the creatures. As I moved to avoid the beam, I felt my ribs shift wrong, worsening the crack. The intense pain made me cry out in shock. I lost my footing, and was unable to dodge the tail being whipped towards me. It hit my midsection in the exact spot that hid the cracked ribs, the force completely shattering the bone. I was thrown across the ground, feeling a sharp point puncture my lungs. Blood quickly filled my lungs, and came sputtering out of my mouth as the blow from hitting the concrete knocked the wind out of me. I tried to call for help, but the noise was garbled behind the blood in my mouth.

"(Y/n)!" I heard a voice shout, and the world began spinning as I saw Bickslow's worried face hovering over me. He'd taken off his visor and there were tears gathering in his bright red eyes. I could taste coppery blood on my tongue as I struggled to breathe. Bickslow gently cradled me, Laxus's coat wrapping around me as he did. He activated his Figure Eyes, and I could feel him desperately holding onto my soul. It was as though he was trying to push strength into it, but I could feel myself fading. "No! Don't you dare die! _(Y/N)_!"

The anguished shouts of the seith mage and the smell of blood momentarily made Laxus lose focus. The green dragon quickly struck at him, sending him into a wall with enough force to crumble it. Time seemed to move slowly for everyone, dragging on the seconds as tragedy struck. My vision was darkening, and I vaguely felt tears falling from my eyes. Bickslow's lips were moving, but I had no idea what he was saying. Despite wearing Laxus's coat, I felt cold. _Is this really the end? I'm… dying?_

"Laxus! (Y/n)!" Freed shouted in despair, moving to shield us from more attacks from the dragon minions. He watched worriedly as Laxus struggled to get up. Evergreen was slumped over on her knees with tears pouring down her cheeks, heartbroken as she watched Bickslow desperately trying to keep her little sister alive. Freed struggled to keep the group safe from the minions. He was barely holding on, and it seemed like all hope was lost as his shields began disintegrating. The monster's beams burst past the runes, heading straight for the group. Bickslow paid no mind to the impending doom as he sobbed heavily, his first love dying in his arms…

Suddenly, time seemed to tick backwards and I found myself back with the Thunder Legion, facing off with the creatures again. We all looked at each other, apparently having experienced the same phenomenon. It was as though I had a vision, or some strange dream. My blood ran cold when I realized-I had died. The monsters moved to attack again and my eyes went wide in fear. This time though, I felt strong arms wrap around me as Bickslow's babies formed a circle in front of us.

" _Baryon Formation_!" The totems shot an enormous beam forward, taking out many of the creatures at once. I turned my head, gaping at Bickslow in surprise. His teeth were gritted as he spoke "No way am I going to lose you!"

The Thunder Legion moved to continue the attack, and I quickly gathered my bearings and fought alongside them. We combined our strength to finally defeat the rest of the creatures. Laxus also continued to fight, suddenly able to predict Zirconis's next move and easily avoid it. It was the best possible outcome for that situation, and seemed to turn the tide of battle.

"What was that?" I wondered, holding my side. I was so sure that my ribs had been broken, and I vividly remember the feeling of being unable to breath and tasting blood in my mouth. Bickslow had taken control of my soul, trying to keep it from slipping away. It was the most frightening and incredible experience I'd ever had.

"I don't know." Bickslow squatted down with his elbows on his knees, holding his head in his hands. I knelt next to him when I realized he had tears running down his cheeks "I saw you die…"

"Bicks…" I muttered, and suddenly I was knocked over as Evergreen hugged me fiercely. She also had tears in her eyes as she held me. Freed stood behind us, his face grim as he watched Laxus continue to fight Zirconis.

Before I had the chance to say anything, Lucy came running past us from the ruins of the city, shouting that she had a way to end the fighting.

Bickslow furiously wiped his face of tears as he stood "C'mon, let's go see what she's talking about. There's no use dwelling on something that never happened."

I could only watch him go silently, and Evergreen released me as we both stood up. She stayed close to me as we followed Lucy to the group near the gate. The celestial mage was explaining to everyone how she found a diary that said if the gate were destroyed, the dragons would cease to exist.

"If what I'm thinking is true," Lucy looked at Yukino "Then we can use our celestial magic to destroy it."

"That's a good idea." Yukino agreed, "If our magic helps power it, then I'm sure it'll be effective in destroying it."

"Exactly." Lucy nodded.

"Alright enough chatting," Laxus shouted, having heard the conversation. I wrapped his coat tighter around me, my mind flashing to the vision from earlier. "Just get it over with! This bastard is pissing me off!"

The two women stiffened, and quickly went to stand in front of the massive gate. The two celestial wizards joined hands, summoning their magic power. A bright golden light surrounded them as they summoned all 12 of the zodiac spirits. I could only gape in wonder at seeing them all together. The women muttered their spell, sending each spirit shooting towards the Eclipse Gate. I shielded my eyes from the blinding light, surprised at how bright it was from way back here.

When it cleared, we were dismayed to find that there wasn't even a scratch on the gate. The man in the white armor sighed "It _is_ meant to be indestructible. I imagine the Eclipse Gate will be nearly impossible to destroy, celestial magic or not…"

"We'll just keep attacking!" Lucy shouted "We can do it!"

They clasped their hands together once again, focusing on keeping their zodiac gates open. The spirits repeatedly sent attacks at the Eclipse Gate, trying their best to damage it. The force of the blows shook the ground, and still the massive structure held. I couldn't believe there was not a single mark or any sign of damage to the gate. This was the last chance we had to survive this battle and it wasn't working. Was it hopeless?

"How did that not do anything…?" Lucy muttered as they ceased their attacks, slumping forward. Yukino sat beside her, panting heavily.

"There must be something that can destroy the gate." Hisui insisted.

Suddenly, a bright light shone behind us, and I looked back to see a giant ball of fire barreling towards the ground. My eyes widened in surprise and I quickly shouted "Get away from the gate you guys, something's coming!"

I grabbed Bickslow's sleeve, pulling him along as we all ran as fast as we could to avoid being hit. The fire ball headed directly for the Eclipse Gate, and the two celestial wizards near it barely avoided the blast, getting knocked over from the force of it. The structure crumbled and debris went flying outward.

"Oh my!" Mira gasped as we all stopped to look back "I hope they're okay!"

The smoke dissipated, and I sighed in relief when I saw the ones closest to the blast were okay. Natsu suddenly stood up among the wreckage, chuckling. The gate was reduced to rubble, and he had been triumphant in his battle with the curator of the entire disaster.

"Leave it to Natsu to demolish something indestructible." Bickslow chuckled halfheartedly, and I leaned into him as we saw the dragons begin to disappear.

I felt incredibly relieved. After so much struggling, we finally pulled through. It had been the most difficult battle of my life, and there were many times I found myself losing hope. Yet again, my guild mates proved me wrong. There was no way we'd ever stop fighting, and if we were together, we could defeat anybody. Not to mention, all the loyal guilds around us did not hesitate to put their lives on the line as well to help. It was amazing. Despite my wounds and the drain on my magic, I was elated.

"C'mon Stormy, let's go see Laxus." Bickslow said, and the other two Thunder Legion members joined us as we made our way over to him and Wendy.

"Glad to see you two are safe!" I sighed when we finally reached them. The small slayer was kneeling on the ground, smiling happily with tears in her eyes. I look up to my boyfriend and felt my own tears gathering. He was still heavily bandaged and looked exhausted, but the grin on his face sent my heart racing. I deftly removed his coat as I made my way up to him for a kiss.

"You look like shit Laxus." Bickslow cackled as I pulled back. Freed smacked the seith mage, outraged.

"Laxus is a true hero!" He cried "Have some respect."

"Tch," Laxus frowned, taking the coat and throwing it over his shoulders "Some hero. I barely did anything. What kind of dragon slayer am I if I can't take out a single dragon?"

I pouted, wrapping my arms gently around his bandaged body "That doesn't matter Laxus. In the end, everyone is safe and we prevailed."

He avoided my gaze and I simply sighed. He was such a stubborn man, but I supposed I understood where he was coming from. I thought I had worked hard to get stronger over the years, but obviously I had a long way to go. Once everything settled down, maybe I would take time away from everyone to continue training myself. Although, with my cracked ribs, it would be awhile before I did anything. Thankfully they hadn't broken like they did during that strange vision earlier...

" _Attention Fairy Tail members_!" I stilled, dropping my arms from Laxus's waist when we heard Warren's voice speaking to us through his telepathy. " _Master has asked that we all make our way back to the center of town!_ "

"Glad the geezer's alright." Bickslow chuckled.

"Why wouldn't be?" Evergreen huffed "He's not the guild leader for nothing, gosh!"

"Jeez, someone's touchy."

"Don't worry about her Bicks," I giggled, sensing the fairy mage's unease. "I'm sure she's just worried about Elfman!'

"(Y/n)!" Evergreen pouted as the two men laughed "You've been hanging out with Bickslow too much."

"That's my girl!" Bickslow cackled, and he threw his arm around my shoulder as we began heading back to the place where we'd started this fight.

We carefully made our way through the debris and ruin, feeling sluggish now that the adrenaline had worn off. Along the way, we grouped up with many other Fairy Tail mages. Juvia glared at me as she gripped Gray's arm tightly. I simply shook my head in exasperation at her antics. She was still upset about Gray and I's fight together during the games. But there was no way I'd be interested in him though when I had two wonderful men at my side.

When we finally reached the spot we were asked meet at, Gramps was sitting there with the rest of our members. Mavis stood beside him, looking glum. Although we had triumphed, it hardly felt like a victory. In the end, none of the dragon slayers could defeat their dragons. I glanced at Laxus as we stood with everyone. _Even Laxus and Wendy together couldn't do it._ I was sure my boyfriend was feeling pretty upset, and I wanted nothing more than to comfort him.

"Listen up brats..." Gramps spoke, and I turned my attention back to the small man "I am so grateful to see that everyone is safe. We all fought a long, arduous war tonight. Unfortunately, our job is not done. Look around you for a moment," We all glanced back at the ruins of the city "Many innocent people have lost their homes. As wizards, we must now take responsibility and help them rebuild. Everyone will be given the chance to heal before we begin. We will all be staying at the palace for a while, thanks to the wonderful offer made by his majesty."

Everyone gasped in awe, and I couldn't help voicing my concern. "Uh, you mean they're gonna let this lot stay in a fancy castle? Not sure that's a good idea."

Gramps sweat dropped "Trust me, I know. But they insisted, so you all must be on your best behavior. I'll kill you if you cost me any money, got it?!"

His declaration made us laugh, and we all heartily agreed.

* * *

 _A/N: This is one of my favorite chapters, and the longest so far! I just love writing heart wrenching scenes. The week following the battle was never really explained, they just jump right into the Grand Ball. So, I took the liberty of filling the gap by having Fairy Tail stay behind to help rebuild! Mostly because the scene of everyone returning to the guild also happened after the ball, so it made the most sense._

 _Let me know what you think! Stay tuned for next week's chapter and finally see why this story is rated M ;)_


	14. Chapter 14

_Hands on your body, I don't wanna waste no time_

 _Feels like forever even if forever's tonight_

 _Just lay with me, waste this night away with me_

 _You're mine, I can't look away, I just gotta say_

 _I'm so fucking happy you're alive_

* * *

The royal castle had luckily only suffered minor damage. The inside was surprisingly in near perfect condition. It seemed as though the walls of this ancient structure could withstand any kind of battle, and we were grateful for that. The servants led us to the living quarters, where we found that we'd be sharing rooms with one other person of the same gender. They had gathered all our belongings and stored them in rooms with our names on the doors. We were told that the king himself had personally overseen the room assigning. The man was a huge fan of Fairy Tail after everything that had happened, and did lots of research on our members to find the best roommates for everyone.

"What the hell?" Lucy cried, seeing Juvia's name written next to hers on one of the doors. "There's no way…"

So, apparently the king was a fan of crack ships. Juvia began wailing, upset that she'd been paired with her _Love Rival._ I couldn't help but giggle as I walked further down the hall and found my door. Thankfully, I was sharing my room with Evergreen.

Bickslow pouted as he came up behind me "Awh, but I wanna room with (Y/n)!"

"You and me both." Laxus muttered as he made his way to his room, which was across the hall way. "Hey Bicks, at least we're sharing."

Freed stared in shock as he came upon his door to the right of Laxus and Bickslow's. " _No!_ "

He had been chosen to share his space with none other than Elfman. Laxus rolled his eyes as the rune mage grabbed his arm and began crying. Apparently, this king had some weird ideas of good roommates.

"Hey, that works!" Bickslow laughed, elbowing Freed "When Elfman sneaks out to see Ever, you can sneak in Mira!"

The rune mage released Laxus and glared at Bickslow, his cheeks flaring up. "Why you-!"

"What's this about my sister?" Elfman said, and I could only chuckle as Freed quickly composed himself.

"Nothing at all." He walked into the room, Elfman following him and looking confused. The door shut, and my boyfriend's waved goodnight to me as they also went to their room.

"Well, that was quite the show." I giggled, turning to Evergreen as she opened our door. How this group still had the energy for all the teasing and playfulness was beyond me. "I had no idea Freed liked Mira!"

"Yeah he's really good at hiding it." She said, grinning "But there's nothing any of us can hide from each other."

We walked into our suite, marveling when we saw the lavish room. It held two full-sized beds, one on each wall, with two chairs and a table placed in the center. Our things had been neatly put away in two separate dressers. Lavish paintings decorated the walls, with beautiful white silk curtains covering the large window. All of the furniture was made of beautiful dark oak. There were large vases full of flowers placed on each bed-side table, and in one corner of the room there was a small sofa piled with fluffy pillows. To the right, a door led to a large bathroom with marble floors and golden counter-tops.

"Man, I really hope nobody ruins anything." I chuckled, looking around at the obviously expensive decorations.

"Seriously." Evergreen sighed in agreement as she flopped down on her mattress "These beds are so comfy! I'm exhausted."

I sat down gently, wincing at the pain in my side. "Yeah, same here. I need to shower and change my dressings though."

"It'll be nice when Wendy can heal you." She muttered as she snuggled into bed. "You pushed yourself really hard today, especially since you fought in the games too."

"Eh, I'm okay. I probably won't bother with healing." I shrugged "I didn't have anyone to do that for seven years, so I know I can handle it. Wendy will have too much on her plate with everyone else anyway."

"Jeez, when did you get so stubborn (Y/n)?" Evergreen giggled, laying back and staring at the ceiling.

"I've always been this way sis." I responded as I began grabbing my pajama's and shower supplies.

I go to ask her if she was going to shower as well, but she's already passed out, snoring lightly. I giggle and walk over to her, gently removing her glasses and placing them on the bedside table. Then, I go into our shared bathroom to take a shower. I quickly and carefully clean off before getting out, allowing just a little bit of time to soak my muscles under the hot spray. My ribs shouted in protest of my movements, so I tried to hurry as I redressed my wounds using the first aid kit in the bathroom. It looked awful, and the bandages wouldn't stay in place. I sighed in frustration as I looked in the mirror. _Too bad I can't ask Laxus. He's good at doing it…_

I briefly wonder if maybe I should. Would he already be asleep? I threw on a t-shirt and slipped my pajama pants on and resolved to go check. If the two were asleep, I could simply leave and they'd never even know I was there. And if they were awake, I could get my wounds properly dressed and spend a little bit of time with them. After what we'd been through, I really just wanted to enjoy their presence alone for awhile.

I gathered up the supplies, and softly walked out of the bathroom. Evergreen was totally passed out, and I knew she would be until we forced her to get up. The door creaked lightly as I left the room, and I grit my teeth as I slowly shut it and padded across the hallway to my boyfriends' shared room. The light was still on, so I walked in. The two men had obviously showered and were seemingly in the middle of a conversation when I slipped inside, shutting the door behind me. They looked over in surprise, and Bickslow grinned.

"Hey sexy." He purred. He was shirtless, wearing only a pair of loose flannel pajama pants and a wide smirk on his rarely-seen face. His totems sat empty of magic on the dresser, since he had surely used up too much magic to keep them out any longer "Didn't think you'd be sneaking over here so soon. Did you just miss me that much?"

I rolled my eyes "Don't flatter yourself Bixy. I just came here to see if Laxus could dress my wounds."

The seith mage chuckled "Oh, and is that why you're not wearing a bra?"

I flushed, realizing I had forgotten to put it on before coming over here. "I just got out of the shower. Shut up."

I looked over to Laxus who was smirking and wearing just a black pair of briefs. I avoided looking at his thick, powerful thighs and that tempting bulge as he spoke "If I'm gonna dress your wounds, you'll have to take your shirt off."

"Ugh, whatever." I huffed. I should have known these two would be perverts about this. Carefully, I slipped one hand out of my sleeve and under my shirt to cross over my nipples, and I used my other hand to pull off my shirt over my head. I kept my breasts covered as I glared at the two men "Happy?"

"Awh, you cheated." Bickslow pouted, flopping back on his bed in disappointment.

Laxus moved closer to me, gently gripping my hips to lift me onto the dresser. He began undoing the terrible wrapping I had done, and I heard his sharp intake of breath when he saw the purple and swollen skin where my ribs were fractured "Jesus (Y/n), when did this happen?"

"They got bruised during my fight with Sherria..." I responded, avoiding his stern gaze.

"Tch. This is more than a bruise." Laxus said, staring up at me.

I couldn't help but sigh as I saw Bickslow stand up to look. The seith mage just stared at the injury and I bit my lip "I guess at some point during the dragon battles they got fractured? But that's it, it's no big deal."

"(Y/n)," Bickslow muttered, still staring at my ribs "When you were dying, you coughed blood… Is it because of that injury? It got worse when you were hit and your rib punctured your lungs, didn't it?"

"You died?! Is that was Bickslow was screaming about? What the fu-!" Laxus practically shouted, and I quickly covered his mouth with my hand.

"Ssshh, people are sleeping!" I hissed, pulling my hand away when he growled quietly "Besides, that didn't happen, right? It was just a weird vision or something…"

"It was still the worst feeling of my life." Bickslow whispered, his expression somber. I frowned as I held my hand out to him.

"Baby, come here." I said, and he sulked as he grabbed my hand and carefully put his arms around me. I kept my chest covered, and motioned for our boyfriend to join the hug. "You too Laxus."

The larger man reluctantly moved his arms to wrap them around us both and I sighed "What happened tonight was awful, but you need to trust that no matter what happens, we'll always be together. Whatever happens, we'll make it through. Don't be upset about a stupid little thing like this."

"This is hardly some little thing (Y/n)." Laxus sighed, pulling back. "But you're right, we'll always be together. I'll make sure of it. I'm never going to let you get hurt like that again."

"That's right." Bickslow laughed, kissing me gently before pulling away "I'm definitely never letting you out of my sight again, just so you know."

I giggled, playfully rolling my eyes at his declaration as Laxus began gently caring for my wounds. It was silent for awhile as he worked. He then quickly began wrapping them in gauze. I had nearly forgotten I was topless, but now I couldn't stop thinking about it as Bickslow watched our boyfriend finish.

"Sleep here tonight?" The seith mage said as I jumped off the dresser and turned away to put my shirt on "I won't try anything, especially since you're injured. I just want to cuddle. We can push the beds together for more room and all three of us can cuddle."

I looked over to Laxus who shrugged "I don't mind."

"Sure." I nodded, excited to finally spend some alone time with the two men.

All of us were way too tired to do anything other than sleep, so I knew nothing would happen tonight. They carefully pushed the beds together, trying to keep quiet, and I crawled directly into the middle. The mattresses lined up perfectly, and it was almost like they had magically seamed together. I slid under the covers as the two men joined me, both of them pressing gently against me. I cradled my back against Laxus's strong chest as he put both arms around me, and I wrapped my arms around Bickslow as he put his arm around my waist. He avoided my ribs, laying his hand on my hip. His thumb rubbed the skin where my top had ridden up, and I sighed in bliss. The seith mage rested his head against my chest as I ran my fingers through his mohawk. Eventually my hand stilled as I closed my eyes, and we all fell asleep quickly.

 ** _***Dirty Sexy Lemons Ahead***_**

The next day I woke up feeling incredibly refreshed, if not a bit sore. The light from outside was hidden behind the thick curtains, so the room was somewhat dark despite the early morning sun. I opened my eyes slowly to find myself still sandwiched between my boyfriends. Laxus was pressed against me, and Bickslow had rolled onto his back. My head was resting on his chest, my leg thrown over his body. I sighed, and slowly rubbed my fingers along his bare stomach. He stirred, turning his head towards me and opening his dark red eyes.

"Man, if I could wake up like this every day, I'd be a happy man." He grinned, kissing my forehead. His voice was husky, thick from sleep.

Laxus stirred behind me, and I blushed when I felt his hardening member pressing against my ass. He was not even fully erect and I could tell he was huge. The dragon slayer breathed deeply as he gripped me tighter "Mm, I know what you mean Bicks."

The seith mage chuckled, turning towards me and slipping his hand under my shirt. I closed my eyes as Laxus began nibbling on my neck, his hand rubbing my leg. The atmosphere quickly grew heady and the two men pressed their bodies closer to mine. Bickslow kissed me as he moved my shirt up further. I gladly allowed the two men to continue, feeling incredibly turned on. Every time we had done anything like this, we'd been interrupted. Now, we were in the privacy of a room and nobody would be waking this early anyway.

"Is this alright?" Bickslow mumbled against my lips and I pulled back to give him a questioning look. "I know you're still injured, are we hurting you?"

I smiled at his concern. Honestly, I'd nearly forgotten my injuries amid the passion. I knew if we continued this that they'd take care to not hurt me. After all this time, I was completely ready and eager to give myself over fully to these two. Injuries be damned! "Don't worry, I'm okay. I know you guys would never hurt me. I'm enjoying this too much to stop now."

Bickslow grinned wickedly before pulling at my shirt. Laxus moved back as I sat up, quickly tossing the article of clothing away. The dragon slayer quickly dove on my mouth as I lay back down, moving my lips with his. I moaned when I felt Bickslow's warm tongue trailing a path up my stomach and towards my breast, avoiding the bandages. He lightly gripped one mound, and quickly flicked the wet muscle against my nipple. I gasped, and Laxus slid his tongue in my mouth, dominating the kiss.

I was overcome with pleasure as Laxus began moving his hand down under the blanket to tease the band of my pants. I couldn't help wiggling my hips pleadingly, and he smirked into our kiss. His finger slid teasingly over my pants, lightly rubbing my core. I was so incredibly turned on and wanted to give him just as much pleasure, so I began palming his hardening erection through his briefs. He growled, throwing the blanket off the bed and sitting up. I gazed up at him, dizzy with lust and Bickslow pulled away from his ministrations on my breasts.

"Alright, before this goes further I need to ask." Laxus said "What all are you guys okay with?"

"I'm down for anything; it's up to (Y/n)." Bickslow responded, and they both glanced at me.

"We've been interrupted too many times." I huffed "I want everything you two can give me. No more waiting! And... I want you both, at the same time."

They grinned, and we moved in unison. I sat up on my knees, watching as the two men stood and dropped their bottoms. I didn't even care that my breasts were proudly on display, too preoccupied with my boyfriends' impressive forms. They stood there completely naked, looking like gods with their toned bodies lit by the dim morning light. Both men sported incredible erections, their cocks ready for attention. This was the first time I'd seen either of them fully nude, and I couldn't stop myself as I hungrily licked my lips.

"Oh baby, that is one sexy expression." Bickslow chuckled "Let's see what other ones we can get from you."

The seith mage walked over to me, pulling me to stand up. He turned me around, facing Laxus. I blushed at the blonde man's intense gaze as Bickslow began pressing his erection against my ass. He moved his hands around to cup my breasts, lifting them and pulling on my nipples. I cried out, and Laxus swiftly moved forward to swallow my cries. Bickslow released my breasts, sinking to his knees and grabbing the top of my pants. He slowly pulled them down across my ass, running his tongue along one cheek.

"No underwear?" Bickslow said as he pulled the bottoms completely off "You kinky girl."

I blushed, pulling away from my kiss with the larger man to catch my breath. Laxus continued to lay kisses on my neck, nipping at the skin and moving his hands to play with my breasts. Bickslow gripped my ass, spreading me and dipping his long tongue between my legs. "Bicks!"

I shivered, and ran my nails across Laxus's chest. He groaned at the rough treatment, releasing my breasts as I bent forward to allow Bickslow's tongue more room to explore. My face was nearly level with Laxus's large cock, beading with his arousal. I softly gripped it, pumping it a few times before licking the tip. Bickslow slid his tongue along my folds as I closed my mouth around Laxus's cock and moaned. The man suddenly grabbed my hair, pulling me back before I could envelop him fully.

"Bed, now." He commanded, and I shivered in delight at his commanding tone. Bickslow stood up and watched as Laxus led me to the bed. The blonde man laid down first, pulling me to crouch above him after he settled against the head board. My breasts brushed against his erection as I leaned over him and he crossed his arms behind his head. "I want you to suck me while Bickslow prepares you for both of our cocks."

His bold words sent another shiver through my body, and I eagerly complied. I leaned down, my ass sticking out as I grabbed Laxus's cock and began slowly running my tongue up it. He closed his eyes, and I moaned when I felt Bickslow's tongue running teasingly close to my wet center. I sank my mouth down around Laxus and sucked hard as I moved back up. I slid my tongue along the underside of his head before moving down again. He groaned as I began slowly bobbing my head, rubbing whatever part of his cock I couldn't reach with my hand.

I could barely focus as Bickslow dipped two fingers into me, spreading the wetness gathered there to my clit and sliding his tongue into my folds. He closed his mouth around the bundle of nerves, quickly moving his tongue against it. I moaned around the cock in my mouth and Laxus roughly grabbed my hair, pumping his hips. They still managed to take care not to aggravate my injury, despite the roughness.

The coarse treatment felt amazing. I loved to get dirty and rough in bed, which is why most of my previous lovers had not been enough for me. They weren't willing to try all the kinky stuff like bondage and things like that, so I quickly grew bored with their vanilla style of sex. I was delighted to explore with these two, knowing they were probably willing to do things like that with me. Especially with how demanding Laxus was. They were being gentle now though, wary of my injuries, and I was grateful for that. However, I couldn't wait till I was fully healed and they could go all out. _I wonder if Laxus would like being called master._ The thought made me giggle.

Suddenly, Bickslow began to rub his fingers against my ass. I had done anal before, so it wasn't a big deal. It honestly felt good, but it'd been a long time since I'd done it and I definitely needed prepping for Bickslow's impressive length. The seith mage seemed to be asking permission, and I eagerly moved my ass closer to his wandering digits. He chuckled, before pushing two fingers in slowly. I forced myself to stay relaxed and it barely hurt. Soon, it felt simply incredible as his tongue moved across my clit while he pumped his fingers in and out. I cried out around Laxus's cock, pulling back to pant heavily as Bickslow stuck another finger in me, stretching me further.

"God, you're so sexy (Y/n)." Bickslow moaned "I can't believe I get to fuck your tight little ass."

"Oh fuck!" I couldn't help the loud cry as he continued to pleasure me. It was so sexy and filthy. I could feel myself growing close to orgasm from his amazing tongue and fingers. I quickly focused back on Laxus, making sure to give him as much pleasure as I was receiving. As my mouth moved faster on him, I gently moved my hand to caress his balls.

Laxus groaned, gripping my hair tightly "Your mouth is so hot (Y/n)! You're such a good cocksucker!"

I shuddered, clenching around Bickslow's fingers at the lewd words. Both men were using that against me, driving me to bliss with their dirty talk. I hummed, moving my mouth quicker as the seith mage continued his assault on my pussy and ass. He slid his fingers in as deep as they'd go, and after a perfectly timed suck on my clit, I came undone with an muffled moan. He continued his ministrations as I bucked, pressing myself against his mouth to keep the waves of pleasure coming. Eventually he slowed down, pulling back and gently sliding his fingers out.

Laxus pulled my head off his cock and gently guided me up to straddle his hips. He kissed me, and I felt him position himself at my dripping entrance. "You ready? We can stop now if you want."

I shook my head "I already told you, I want you both. No stopping, no interruptions. Just the three of us."

He grinned, and I sunk down on him, throwing my head back at the intense feeling of being stretched. Laxus was probably the most well-endowed man I'd ever been with, and I couldn't contain the moan of pleasure. I was still sensitive from my orgasm, and the wetness helped him slid in quickly. He gripped my hips, keeping me still as Bickslow moved behind us. The seith mage gently grabbed my hair, pulling me up against him, and I rested my hands on Laxus's chest. Bickslow turned my face towards him, kissing me deeply.

"You sure you're okay with me doing this?" He muttered, rubbing his cock against me "We can take turns if it's too much."

I could only roll my eyes and smile; although I was grateful for his consideration "I've done anal before, don't worry. Show me just how much of a pervert you really are Bixy."

He smirked at my challenge, pressing his cock against my other hole. I forced myself to relax as he pushed into me. The feeling was completely different, but not unwelcome. I had never had two guys like this at the same time, and I felt like I was going to be split in two. Bickslow was nearly as big as Laxus, and I had never been filled so completely. I cried out in pleasure as Bickslow continued to push deeper inside me, slowly. Laxus grabbed my face, pulling me in for a sloppy kiss before he pulled back and growled at our boyfriend "Fuck, this is amazing. I can feel you rubbing against me."

"Yeah?" Bickslow purred "You like my cock pressing against yours? Maybe someday we can try being in Stormy's pussy at the same time."

Bickslow pushed deeper inside me, and Laxus and I moaned in unison. I couldn't even imagine trying to fit both these two inside me like that. Even now, I was nearly overwhelmed with them both filling separate holes. The intense feeling only heightened as Bickslow bottomed out, and slowly began moving. Laxus gripped my ass, spreading my cheeks apart and gently pumping into me. The two men moved in unison, and I could only grip the man beneath me tightly as they penetrated me.

"Fuck, I don't know how long I'm gonna last boss." Bickslow huffed as he began moving quicker "She's so tight."

I shivered, feeling my insides clench, and Laxus smirked "Mmh, you sure do love dirty talk don't you (Y/n)? I can feel your pussy clenching down on my cock!"

I could only moan and curse in response, unable to form a coherent thought. Bickslow gripped my jaw, turning my face to dominate my lips in a kiss as his other hand fondled my bouncing breasts. I ran my hands across Laxus's chest and stomach, admiring the hard muscles. He growled when my thumbs brushed across his nipples, and I began moving my hips back to meet their thrusts.

The movement caused the men to slide deeper inside me, hitting spots I never believed possible. We were all lost in pleasure, totally immersed in each other as we all rode towards our peaks. Bickslow came first, sliding his long tongue into my mouth as he moaned. I felt him release inside my ass, the warm liquid filling me. He slowly pulled out and I shivered at the sudden emptiness.

"Damn," Bickslow muttered, "You're too sexy for your own good (Y/n)."

"Turn around." Laxus said, lifting me off his cock "I'm not done with you."

I did as he said, letting him guide me as I faced Bickslow and sunk back down on Laxus's throbbing member. He gripped my thighs, spreading my legs as I leaned back on his chest. The seith mage watched, completely enraptured and it brought a fierce blush to my face as Laxus began rocking into me.

"Do you like having someone watch you (Y/n)?" Laxus growled, pumping his hips and using his strength to move me up and down on him "You like having Bickslow looking at your pussy full of my cock?"

I bit my lip, completely shocked that the idea was actually exciting. Bickslow grinned "I can think of something better than just watching."

He crouched down, slipping his tongue out and running it up Laxus's length and towards my clit. We both moaned at the feeling, and Bickslow smirked. He knew he had a true talent when it came to his tongue, and began to pleasure us both with it. I tossed my head back, and Laxus began to lick and suck on my neck. He pounded into me quicker, low growls coming from his chest. It was so animalistic, and made my heart race with excitement. With Laxus fucking me as Bickslow teased my clit, I felt another orgasm quickly come rushing forward.

"Oh god, I'm gonna come!" I cried, biting my lip to keep my moans contained. I should have been quieter this whole time, knowing everyone in our guild was staying in rooms nearby, but it was impossible with the sensation of being double penetrated.

"Fuck, me too." Laxus huffed, quickening his pace. Bickslow gently caressed his balls as he licked at my clit and we both cried out as our orgasms hit. Laxus dug his teeth into my neck to quiet his moans, slowing his thrusts gradually and prolonging my orgasm. He finally stopped, letting go of my neck as I panted. There would surely be a mark there and I chuckled when I realized how much like a dragon Laxus could be.

"Wow, that was hot." Bickslow said, leaning back. His face glistened with my juices and I could only lay back on Laxus, completely spent.

He softly pulled out, wincing when he realized he had come inside me without a condom on "Shit, I probably should have asked if you were okay with me coming inside you."

I shrugged, gently moving off his chest and sprawling out on the bed beside him. "I would have said something beforehand if I wasn't. I'm on birth control, so no worries."

"That's gonna make things easier." Bickslow mumbled, lying next to me. I was once again sandwiched between the two men. I wanted to fall back asleep, feeling completely satisfied, but the sticky juices coating my thighs and insides kept me from sleep.

"I need another shower." I mumbled. "And I should probably get back to my room before Ever wakes up and sees I'm gone..."

"Eh, who cares?" Bickslow responded "Everyone knows we're together, and they probably all heard your cries of love anyway."

I blushed, smacking the laughing man as I got up and out of the bed to start gathering up my clothes "Shut your dirty mouth."

"You were pretty loud (Y/n)." Laxus chuckled, standing up and pulling me towards him. I pouted up at him before he kissed me "Go ahead and shower. Then you need to get some more rest."

I nodded, smiling softly before I quickly dressed "I'll see you guys later."

"Bye Stormy!" Bickslow called, and I blew him a kiss as I slipped out of the room and made my way across the hall.

Evergreen was dead asleep and still snoring when I walked in, and I quickly ran to the restroom to clean up. It was early in the morning, and considering what a rough night everyone had, I doubted anyone was planning on getting up anytime soon. I laid back down in bed a little later, dressed in my pajamas and feeling spent. I thought about the past 24 hours, and was amazed when I realized the games had barely ended late yesterday. It felt like forever since then. So much had happened.

We fought for our lives in a grueling battle to save our future, and now I had finally gone all the way with my boyfriends. I couldn't believe how much we'd been through. I sighed, shifting in bed as I thought about the two men. There was still so much I wanted to learn about them. I haven't had enough time with Laxus to be in love with him like I was with Bickslow, and I wanted to reach that point with the dragon slayer. Sometime soon, we'd have to spend some alone time together.

I eventually fell back asleep, my mind consumed with thoughts of my two sexy boyfriends.

It was early afternoon when the servants began knocking on doors, announcing that the king had set up a late meal for everyone. I sighed as I got out of the comfy bed, stretching my sore limbs. Those last few hours of sleep had completely rejuvenated me, except my legs felt a bit wobbly from my earlier escapades with my boyfriends. I glanced to my right to see Ever had barely stirred from all the shouting by the servants. She was such a deep sleeper. I walked over to her and began gently shaking her. She didn't even move as I shook her harder.

"Sis, time for food!" I said.

"Huh, food?" She muttered, and I laughed at the slight bit of drool on the corner of her mouth when she lifted her head.

"That would work on you." I giggled.

"What?" The fairy mage was always groggy in the mornings. "What did you say?"

"Just get up and get ready." I told her, practically dragging her out of the bed.

Evergreen took a quick shower while I changed into a t-shirt and shorts. I made sure to choose a shirt that would hide the little love bite Laxus had left on me. If anyone saw it, they'd definitely know what went on. I could only imagine how much we'd be teased about it, and I didn't want to deal with that. Evergreen quickly dressed after her shower, feeling much more awake now.

After we both finished getting ready, we joined everyone walking towards what I could only assume was one of _many_ dining areas. This castle had so many different floors and hallways and rooms. Laxus and Bickslow were already there, standing and talking to Freed. I couldn't contain my blush as I saw the two men. In my head, I could only picture how they had been this morning, naked before my eyes.

They turned towards us as we walked into the room and both smirked. I tried to ignore my dirty thoughts as Evergreen pulled me over to them.

"Morning guys." She smiled "Sleep well?"

"You have no idea." Bickslow snickered.

I glared at him and Laxus only grinned. Evergreen looked at us questioningly.

"What did you do?" She asked hesitantly, and then Gajeel suddenly walked by.

"Jeez you three reek!" He scoffed, talking loudly "Couldn't even wait to get it on till y'all were healed, eh?"

I flushed when I realized that the dragon slayers would be able to smell what we had done this morning, despite showering. Laxus and Bickslow just had a smug look on their faces as Freed and Evergreen face palmed. Gajeel chuckled, walking away as all of the guild members that heard him started to hoot at us.

"Worth it." Bickslow said, slinging his arm over me and planting a sloppy kiss on my lips.

* * *

 _A/N: Well, that happened! This is my first lemon, and I'm hoping it's not totally terrible. I know lots of girls despise anal, but it's fun and it just makes the lemons with two men easier to write._

 _Fair warning people, the lemons will get dirtier and there will be more guy on guy action. Hope that doesn't make anyone want to stop reading! I have so much planned for this story now that the GMG arc is done!_

 _As always, let me know what you think and I'll see you next chapter! Sorry for any errors, I'm too drunk to fix them right now. That was the only way I'd get the courage to post lol_


	15. Chapter 15

_Little darling, the smiles returning to the faces_

 _Little darling, it feels like years since it's been here_

 _Here comes the sun, here comes the sun_

 _And I say it's all right_

* * *

After everybody ate and got ready for the day, Gramps had us all gather outside. We had a lot of work to do. After lots of healing, everybody was feeling refreshed and ready to begin rebuilding the city. Erza, despite the healing, was still injured and so she helped to oversee everyone. Gramps coordinated with the king's men, breaking everyone into groups and assigning us sections. There were tons of people working on different parts of town, the damage being worse the closer you were to the castle.

"Man, if only some of the other guilds had stayed to help." Cana groaned. She had been put on a team with me, The Thunder Legion, Laxus, and several royal builders.

"You just say that cuz you wanna see Bacchus all sweaty." I chuckled, helping her as we carried a large beam of wood to Laxus and Bickslow.

"Hey, can ya blame me?" She said, grinning. "You got lucky; you get to see your boyfriends like that!"

"Yeah, I know right?" I couldn't help giggling as we watched the two shirtless men lifting the beams up to the builders. Bickslow's babies helped the builders, and the two men were lifting the heavy beams single-handedly. Their muscles bulged, the sun making the sweat on their bodies glisten. It was honestly a dreamy sight, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

"Laxus is so amazing..."

I turned in surprise when Freed spoke next to me, carrying a beam with Evergreen. The sight of the green haired man ogling one of my boyfriends was honestly funny, and I found myself laughing along with the other two women as he stared. The men looked at us curiously, and we simply brushed them off as we got back to work. We continued for an hour or two, getting quite a lot done. However, this was going to take forever even with our steady pace.

It was mid afternoon when we were suddenly greeted with the sight of mages from all of the guilds that had participated in the games. They were grinning, eargerly offering their help in rebuilding the city. I was weary seeing some of the Sabertooth mages, minus the truly evil bitch Minerva. Gramps prepared to stand up to them until Sting explained how he had become master. As such, he said wanted to change the guild to be more like Fairy Tail, and Gramps hugged him tearfully upon hearing that. The other guilds were all given sections to work on and everyone jumped into the work. I stood near Laxus and Bickslow, smiling softly at the sight of Sabertooth mages working alongside everyone. Orga came up to us then, trying to look uninterested. Although, his hesitant stature gave away his true intention.

"Need some help?" He grunted, looking at Laxus. He was frowning, but still looked hopeful.

My boyfriend watched the man for a moment, before holding his hand out. "Not really… How about a competition? Let's see who can lift more."

The god slayer grabbed Laxus's hand, and the two lightning men grinned at each other as they shook hands. Then, they began to move in record speeds to get the beams up and placed. The builders were unable to keep up, and simply went behind the men to quickly bolt them into place.

Bickslow and I chuckled at our boyfriend's antics as the two giant men worked together, without actually admitting they were. Many other guilds had branched out to help, Lyon of course on Juvia's team with a grumpy Gray and Sherria. Sting went right to Natsu and his team, at the same time that Gajeel forced Rogue to help him, Pantherlily and Levy. It was great to see everyone was alive and well after the dragon attack.

With all the other guilds joining us in our efforts, we got repairs done in record time. It took a few days, and the guilds all stayed to continue helping. They took up rooms in inns that we restored on the first day, directly near the castle. The rest of the city took the next six days to complete, until almost everything had been done. People were able to start moving back in to their homes, and it was almost like the dragons had never happened. Rumors were spoken around town about the beasts, but they were brushed of as just silly stories. Many just played it off as being us guild mages fault, which is why they thought we'd stayed to help the city rebuild. It was bittersweet, but that was the life of a mage.

I barely had time to spend alone with my boyfriends, besides our nightly cuddle fests. Which, if I'm being honest, sometimes ended in a literal fuck fest. Despite our tiredness after long days of construction work, we found just enough energy to have sex. We lazily explored each other's bodies, and afterwards we'd talk quietly. I had learned a lot about the two men in our brief alone time before we fell asleep. Bickslow was really experienced in things like bdsm and kinks like that, and I found myself eager to get home to my apartment to explore more options with him. Laxus admitted to being open to it, but having never done anything similar before he wasn't sure. However, with the way he acted in our nightly romps, I could tell he'd enjoy it.

I was glad the week went by so quickly despite not getting much time with the two men. I still hadn't said "I love you" to the dragon slayer. I could tell he wasn't to that point yet, so I was fine with waiting until he was. Especially since I wasn't ready for it either. We'd have plenty of time together to get there once we returned to Magnolia and our lives went back to normal. When we got back, I planned on spending alone time with the two before going off on team missions with Laxus and the Thunder Legion. It was my turn to plan a date anyway, so I definitely wanted to do something as soon as possible.

On the sixth day of rebuilding, the king gathered everyone back in the Central Plaza and invited all the competing guilds to a Grand Ball. He was holding it in honor of everything we had done for them since the night the dragons attacked. To further thank us, he said he would provide us all with specially made clothes. We were all fitted the day before so we'd have perfectly fitting outfits made in record time. The girls were all so excited to get the chance to dress up. We'd been working so hard, and we would finally get to relax and pamper ourselves.

That brought me to now, the day of the Grand Ball. The castle was bustling with people in preparation for the night, with servants delivering specially made ballgowns and suits. Evergreen and I stood in our shared room, looking at the dresses they'd set out for us. Mine was a sleeveless ball gown with a black corset bodice and alternating black and (f/c) layered skirt. There were also (f/c) silk gloves laid next to where the gorgeous dress was hanging, along with some jewelry and a hair bow. I glanced over to see Evergreen fawning over her own amazing red dress and accessories.

"Wow, these dresses are gorgeous!" She said, lightly touching the fabric "I hope they let us keep them!"

"Yeah seriously." I giggled "Although, I have no idea when I'd ever need something this fancy after tonight."

We gathered up the dresses and accessories before heading out. We met up with Cana and Erza before heading down to a common room where all the girls were helping each other get ready. Lucy called out her spirit Cancer to help everyone with their hair, while Mira and Lisanna helped some girls with their makeup. We all talked cheerfully, and even a few girls from other guilds joined us.

"I can't wait to see Bickslow and Laxus all dressed up." I grinned excitedly as Evergreen placed a bow in my hair.

"Those two are going to swoon when they see you sis." She said, smiling at me in the mirror as she carefully finished.

"Yeah, I doubt Laxus is the kind of person to _swoon,_ " I giggled, standing up and turning to her "But that would be quite something."

She laughed, and we walked over to where our dresses were hanging. It was nearing the time for the ball so Evergreen and I helped each other into our gowns. Afterwards, I put on an intricate silver necklace that sat high on my collar, not hiding my (f/c) guild mark on my left breast. Then I finished off the look with silver bracelets and a pair of black heels.

Evergreen joined me after she finished putting her heels on, and we slowly made our way to the ballroom arm-in-arm. There were tons of people in the brightly lit room. The atmosphere was extremely pleasant, and I found myself grinning widely. A band played beautiful music and it seemed like everyone was in high spirits. Evergreen and I made our way over to where Freed stood with Bickslow and Laxus, both of whom looked uncomfortable. Upon seeing me, the two men grinned and my heart began soaring.

They looked so handsome. Laxus was in a white and gold coat with a purple shirt underneath, and Bickslow was wearing a dashing high-collared blue mantle with gold accents draped over a blue shirt. He had his visor off and his mohawk was perfectly styled. Their pants were both tucked into dark boots, giving them an almost pirate-like look. Laxus had women fawning over him, like usual. Freed tried his best to keep them away, but they simply ignored him in favoring of complimenting the large man. I walked up to the group, and the women left as Evergreen joined Freed in shooing them away.

"Vultures." The rune mage grumbled, straightening his lapel and brushing some loose strands of hair from his face.

I couldn't help but giggle, looking over at Evergreen "You weren't kidding when you said this happens a lot."

"Yup, but with the way you guys act they'll find out quick that he's taken now." She grinned. "It's only a matter of time before your relationship makes the cover of Sorcerer Weekly."

Laxus rolled his eyes, and we watched as the women moved on to Orga, who was enjoying the attention much more than the dragon slayer had.

I looked around the room, seeing that everyone was here now. Although, it was oddly quiet and I realized someone was missing. "Has anyone seen Natsu?"

"He ain't here?" Bickslow said, surprised.

"Normally he'd be running wild all over the place." Evergreen stated, looking around.

"Thank god he's not." Laxus muttered, and I simply chuckled. The pink haired boy really got on Laxus's nerves. I was glad Natsu wasn't here causing a ruckus, but it was strange without him around. I wondered where he had gone off too. Bickslow grabbed my hand, breaking me away from my musing as he kissed my gloved fingers.

"You look dazzling, by the way." He said, and I smiled.

"Thanks, so do you." I said, twining my fingers with the seith mage. I looked over to Laxus, who was still frowning "You're pretty handsome too Laxy."

He rolled his eyes at the nickname, trying to hide a grin. We all stood around talking and drinking champagne for a while before the music got louder and people began dancing. Evergreen left to go visit a certain _man_ , while Freed went over to talk to Rufus. It was the first time the men had had a chance to talk. They got along pretty quickly, being that they were so similar. Although, I really hoped that the rune mage would gather up the courage to ask Mira to dance sometime tonight. Those two would be such a cute couple. I scanned the crowd, smiling to myself as I watched everyone from different guilds mingling.

"Wanna dance?" I heard someone ask, and to my surprise it was Laxus. He hated dancing, so it was shocking to see him offering before Bickslow.

"Yeah. I'd love to." I smiled, taking his hand as he reached out. Bickslow waved us off cheerfully, grabbing my glass of champagne from me and heading over to hang out with the guys from Quatro Cerberus. They happily accepted him into the dog pile, Cana drinking merrily among them.

Laxus led me to the dance floor, and I couldn't help noticing all the eyes glancing at us as he put his arm around my waist. Surely many of the women watching were cursing my name. I stiffen awkwardly as he pulls me close to him and he frowns. "What's wrong?"

"Just a bit embarrassed with so many people watching us." I mumble as we slowly began swaying to the beat. "What made you decide to come out and dance anyway? This is unlike you."

He shrugged "Guess I just wanted to spend some time alone with you."

I gaped up at him, surprised by his explanation. "Really?"

"Yeah, of course." His frown deepened, and I wondered if maybe I'd upset him. "It may not seem like it sometimes, but I really like you. More than anyone I've ever been with."

"I'm glad to hear that Laxus..." I smile softly, feeling bad that I had doubted him. "I'm sorry, I guess I keep picturing how you used to be. It's hard to forget, especially since we've barely had any time to really be alone to get to know each other better."

"You're right." He nodded, pulling me closer to his chest. "But now, we have all the time in the world to be together and learn about each other. I know we're both kind of bad at this whole dating thing, but we'll get the hang of it. I wouldn't want to experience this with anyone else."

My eyes widened and my heart began fluttering at his earnest expression. I gently rested my head on his chest, listening to the strong beat of his heart as we danced together. This was the first time I'd done anything this romantic with just Laxus, and it was nice. My relationship with the two men were progressing so differently, which was not totally surprising. However, I wondered how the rest of our lives would work if the three of us weren't on the same wavelength. Hell, Bickslow and I had already said "I love you", but Laxus and I weren't quite to that point yet, and I didn't know what was holding us back.

Polyamory was still new to me, so I wasn't sure what to expect if we couldn't all get to the same point in our relationships. What if two of us wanted to get married and the other didn't? Could we even all three marry each other if we wanted to? And then, there were other things to think of, such as children. Of course, I didn't plan on having kids any time soon. Like, _at all_. If I did want them though, how would that work? Would we try to plan on who fathered them, or leave it to chance? Did Bickslow even want kids? I doubted it. Would Laxus insist they take his name? That was a ridiculously long time from now, but it was something to think about. Bickslow had said this would take lots of communication, and we hadn't done much of that yet.

"What's got you thinking so hard (Y/n)?" Laxus asked, breaking me out of my thoughts.

I sighed "Just wondering how our future will turn out."

He pulled back to look me in the eyes, pushing some fallen locks of hair out of my face "Don't you worry about that stuff. Just enjoy the present. I promise you no matter what, it will all work out."

"That's quite a promise." I mumbled, smiling slightly.

"Yeah, and I'll do whatever I need to in order to keep it." Laxus chuckled, before leaning in and kissing me. We danced for a bit longer until he pulled away "Let's go back to Bickslow before he starts causing trouble."

I looked over to where the seith mage was downing drinks with Gray, Bacchus, Lyon and Elfman. Evergreen seemed upset that the large man's attention had been taken away from her, and looked ready to snap at any moment. Bickslow stopped his antics as we approached and handed me a glass. We chatted with the group for a while before Freed joined us. The servers kept the drinks coming, and I felt myself getting pleasantly buzzed. It was such a great party, and I was glad that everyone seemed to be behaving for once.

That was short lived, however, when a shouting match erupted about which guild Yukino would be joining. It quickly evolved into a giant brawl that involved pretty much everyone. Hell, even the guild masters began fighting as well. I worried about the damages, but couldn't resist joining in. Yukino would be a great asset to our guild. Not only that, but it'd been awhile since I took part in a guild brawl. I was having fun fighting until it was broken up when Arcadios, the knight, demanded everyone to quiet down. The man stood on a balcony above the ball room, with giant doors behind him.

"The king would like to make a speech in honor of you all." He announced "Please, take heed and offer him the utmost respect."

We all watched quietly as the massive doors opened and a figure walked out. I face palmed when I saw Natsu. He had taken the crown and was wearing royal clothing. He cackled loudly, holding his hand out over the crowd as he shouted "Hello loyal subjects! Please make yourselves comfortable!"

Everybody went pale in shock, and Gramps nearly had a heart attack. How could that boy be so bold that he'd take the kings crown and clothes like that? The small man stood behind him wearing his pumpkin head, desperately trying to get Natsu to give back the items.

"I am the king!" Natsu shouted, throwing his fists up as he cackled "I became king!"

"That idiot..." Laxus mumbled as Natsu began arguing cheerfully with the pumpkin man.

"He sure knows how to party." Bickslow laughed.

I could only shake my head as the men left the balcony, finally getting Natsu to give back the royal clothing. The young dragon slayer soon joined everyone else on the floor, quickly making up for all the quiet time while he was gone. The king went to go change, and we all resumed our mingling and dancing. The musicians played beautifully, prompting many people to couple up on the dance floor. Elfman asked Evergreen if she would dance with him, and she tried her best to seem reluctant as she agreed. I winked at her as they walked off, and she rolled her eyes, hiding a grin.

"My turn to dance with you Stormy." Bickslow announced, grabbing my hand. I finished off my glass of champagne, setting it on one of the few undamaged tables before following him.

He led me to the dance floor, and we easily moved with the crowd. I watched, amused, as Freed stood next to Laxus, looking hopeful as he asked the man to dance. Laxus, however, became totally immersed in the food, much to Freed's disappointment. Mira soon went up to the rune mage, causing him to blush as she offered her hand. He accepted, leading her in a very formal waltz. I silently cheered, happy to see the two mingling.

"Having fun?" Bickslow asked as I finally turned my attention back to him.

"Definitely." I smiled "It's so great seeing everyone together and having fun. I really can't wait to get back to Magnolia though. I miss my bed."

"Yeah, we'll probably be super busy though." He said "I can only imagine the number of job offers we'll be getting after winning the games. Especially with Laxus defeating a fucking _wizard saint_."

"I didn't even think about that." I sighed and he only grinned.

"The sooner we get to work, the sooner I can get my own place." Bickslow said "I had quite a bit of fun stuff I lost during the seven year gap that I need to buy again too. I'm glad you kept all the sentimental crap, but you totally missed all my toys."

I blushed, thinking about when I had found Bickslow's stash of bedroom gear. It had totally grossed me out when I found it, being that I was only 14 and he was just a friend then. Now, I felt heat shoot to my core at the thought of the seith mage using those items on me.

"This time though, I can get anything you want me to." He murmured, leaning forward to nibble on my ear. I gasped as his breath ghosted over my skin, the slight smell of alcohol evident beneath his own spicy scent. "We can have lots of time with Laxus to explore all the kinky shit you two want after we do some missions."

I glanced over to the blonde man, who was watching us intently. He no doubt heard Bickslow, judging by the darkening of his stormy blue eyes and the flush on his face. We made eye contact across the room and Laxus winked at me before he moved on to speak with Jura. I felt a shiver go through me at the thought of all the things we could do with each other in the privacy of our own homes.

Bickslow chuckled, turning my attention back to him "I love your expressions. You're so beautiful."

I blushed, holding him closer and wrapping my arms around his neck as we danced. Thankfully, the heels made it easier to reach the seith mage. "So, I was thinking I should talk to Freed about joining the Thunder Legion. It's only right that I become a part of your team after everything we've been through. It's funny that after all that nagging from you guys to join when I was little, I'm finally giving in."

Bickslow sighed, hugging me tightly "I'm really glad everything turned out this way. I love you (Y/n)."

"And I love you Bickslow." I smiled, before kissing him softly.

We stayed close for a few more songs before finally parting. The party was starting to wind down, and we joined Laxus by the food. I snagged a few items, munching happily as Freed and Evergreen left their respective dance partners to talk with us.

"Freed, (Y/n) has something she would like to ask." Bickslow said suddenly as I shoved a small cookie in my mouth. I gaped at him, quickly swallowing the treat and turning to Freed. They were all looking at me expectantly. I hadn't really prepared myself to ask about joining their team so soon, but it seemed like Bickslow decided now would be a good time.

"Well, I guess this is happening now." I muttered before clearing my throat, straightening my skirts as I spoke "Freed, uh, I was wondering if there was any way I could join the Thunder Legion. I figured since I'm dating these two brutes, it would be nice to team up with you guys so we don't have to be apart. I've never really been on a team though, so I'm not sure how well I'll do. But I think we all work well together and so I guess if you want me to-"

"You're rambling." Laxus said, interrupting me. I bit my lip, watching the rune mage as he grinned widely at me.

"Of course you can join. You already proved yourself to be a devoted and capable mage." Freed said "Honestly, I think we've considered you a member ever since you were younger."

Evergreen smiled, hugging me "Jeez (Y/n), why were you so nervous? As if we'd ever turn you down! This team needs another feminine touch."

"I guess you guys just have your little dynamic and I wasn't sure I would fit." I said, shrugging "After all, I don't use eye magic and that seems to be a theme with you guys."

"That's not true, you do use eye magic." Bickslow said, and I look at him questioningly. He smirked, "Every time I look in your eyes, I fall more in love. It's gotta be some kind of enchantment spell, I swear."

"If you say so." I giggle, my cheeks red at his declaration. The other two Thunder Legion members smile and roll their eyes.

"Either way, welcome to the team (Y/n)." Freed says "We're happy to have you."

I laughed as Bickslow forced us all into a group hug. "Thanks guys. I look forward to going on missions with you."

"You guys better not do anything inappropriate while we're nearby!" Evergreen huffed as we pulled away.

Bickslow and Laxus grinned, giving each other a meaningful look and Evergreen grimaced. I could only shrug at my sister's disgusted face, trying hard not to laugh. We all continued to talk excitedly about what we were going to do when we got home, and before I knew it the party was ending. We were kicked out of the castle for this last night, being offered our old lodgings in the city like all the other guilds. Our belongings were moved for us, and so it was simply a matter of walking back to the inn.

Inside, the guild was still in party mode and our spirits were high. This was our last night of celebration before heading back to Magnolia and getting to work. I joined along with everyone in a night of drinking and talking, and it was well past midnight before we all drunkenly passed out in various positions on the floor and tables. I was surrounded by my closest friends, and had never felt so content in life before that moment. Not only did I have two amazing boyfriends, but now I was officially part of arguably the strongest team in the guild. Things could not be more perfect.

* * *

 _A/N: And we're officially done with the Grand Magic Games arc! Thank Mavis. Stay tuned, cuz there's more to come!_

 _We're gonna have a few random missions and shit before the Tartaros arc. If anyone has any ideas or things they'd like to see, feel free to share them!_


	16. Chapter 16

**_I forgot to do this last chapter, but I wanted to thank the guest that left all those nice reviews! I loved reading them, thank you so much. Thank you to everyone else who has reviewed as well! Just a forewarning, this chapter has one very dirty lemon in it. BDSM themes and whatnot/ Enjoy!_**

* * *

 _Don't wanna take it slow_

 _I wanna take you home_

 _And watch the world explode_

 _From underneath your glow_

* * *

The journey back to Magnolia felt like it took forever. In reality, it had only been a few hours. Everyone was feeling restless during our ride home, and when we arrived it seemed as though the entire town was there, excited to welcome us home. They even held a victory parade for us. Colorful streamers were hung everywhere, confetti being thrown as we walked down the center pathway of the city. Even Twilight Ogre had joined in welcoming us back.

"Man it sure feels great to be home!" Bickslow cackled, throwing his arms behind his head. His babies cheerfully repeated "Home, home!"

"Everyone is so excited." Evergreen giggled, waving to the shouting crowd.

"Yeah! It's time to party!" Cana shouted, walking up beside me and throwing her arm over me.

"Haven't you been doing that this entire time?" I chuckled. She simply winks, taking a swig of her flask before continuing on. I look over to Laxus, who has a blank expression as the women in the crowd swooned over him. Even some of the men were joining in on shouting words of praise at the stoic lightning mage. "Hey, lighten up you grumpy bastard."

He rolled his eyes "Don't make me zap you like I do to Bicks."

"What if I'm into that?" I wink, and he grins. He opens his mouth to respond when suddenly a blur of pink rushes past him.

"Hey everyone!" Natsu shouts, moving to stand in front of the group and turning our attention towards him. "Look what I've got, you guys are gonna love this."

He reaches into his pack, pulling out the king's crown, and we all gawk at the fire mage. He deadpans, shoving it back in "Oops, not that. Sorry, I meant this!"

He pulled out another item and held it above his head, showing it off to the crowd. We all gasped at the large golden trophy. It was the award they gave to the winning guild every year, and I teared up at finally seeing it in our possession.

"I can hardly believe it." Droy cried, munching on a turkey leg. I looked to the other members who had been left behind with me for seven years. They were all in tears, much like me.

"After so many losses too." Jet said, wiping his eyes.

"Fairy Tail is number one!" Warren and Max shouted and I laughed, cheering along with Kinana and Laki.

Natsu threw Romeo up onto his shoulders and the young boy held the gold trophy high. The crowd was going wild, and I could only soak in the excited atmosphere of my guild as we continued our parade. We stopped at the end of the road where the mayor of Magnolia stood, waiting to speak.

"Attention citizens." He said, and everyone quieted down to listen "In honor of Fairy Tail's incredible victory, we have gifted them with a newly restored guild hall!"

"Wow, that's for us?" I mumbled in surprise as the man pointed towards a giant building in place of our old guild. It was bigger than ever, and looked amazing. Everyone shouted excitedly as Gramps began crying, hugging the mayor and thanking him profusely.

"Let's go check it out!" Natsu shouted, running towards the building with Romeo still on his shoulders. The young boy laughed merrily, holding on tightly as Natsu took off into the building. Everybody quickly followed them, but I could only stand there and stare up at the large stone structure. The flag bearing our guild mark flapped proudly in the breeze and I felt my heart fill with delight. _Fairy Tail is back._

"What's wrong Stormy?" Bickslow asked as he walked up next to me, interrupting my thoughts. I looked over to find the rest of the Thunder Legion and Laxus watching me. "Don't you wanna go check out the inside?"

I smiled softly, shifting my travel pack on my shoulders "Yeah, just needed a minute to take it all in, I guess."

I found myself tearing up again and they all smiled. Laxus spoke "I told you we could do it. Now, let's go see what all your hard work has done for you."

He draped his arm over my shoulder, much to the horror of the women in the crowd. Bickslow came up on my other side to grab my hand, and we all joined the rest of our guild in exploring the new guild hall. It was so nice, full of sturdy tables and chairs, and there was tons of space. They even built us an indoor training room with weights and other exercise equipment, as well as locker rooms with showers. Outside there was a beautiful large pool with plenty of areas to sit around it, and a nearby field for training. The upstairs was quiet, and along with Master's office, there was an infirmary and a few other spare rooms. I knew Laxus and the Thunder Legion spent more time upstairs than on the bottom floor, and I was looking forward to sitting up here with them, watching the crowd. I especially couldn't wait to take an S-class mission with him and the Thunder Legion after spending some time relaxing at home. It was going to be awesome.

After everyone got their fill of the new guild hall, Makarov announced that we already had lots of mission requests posted. Some members, such as Team Natsu, quickly jumped at the chance to go on a job. Nab took up residence at the mission board, forever in search of the perfect job. Cana made sure to taste every single alcohol that had been stocked at the bar, while Mira worked with Kinana to fill all the orders of the older crowd. It was almost exactly as I remembered from when I was young.

"So, what should we do now that we've got so much time?" Evergreen asked as we all stood upstairs watching everyone. "Did you guys want to go on a job today?"

"I think I'm gonna pass." I responded "Right now I'm feeling a bit homesick and I think I wanna just enjoy being back for a little. You guys can go though."

"Nah, no way am I leaving you here alone!" Bickslow said "Besides, you owe me and Laxus a date."

I turned to my boyfriends and pouted "I really would like to take you guys out, but I'm a little broke right now. I'm only able to wait on a job because my rent is caught up."

"That's fine," Laxus shrugged "You don't have to do anything."

"Yeah, we can just have a night in." Bickslow grins "How about we go to your house and make dinner and watch some movies? You can cook, that way it's still like a date."

I giggle "You're just saying that cuz you don't wanna have to cook."

"I don't want him to cook either," Laxus grunted. "Last thing we need is to get food poisoning."

The seith mage glared at our teasing, and I quickly kissed him. He smacked my ass as I pulled back and I laughed when Laxus zapped Bickslow on the butt. It was more of a teasing zap than one meant to hurt, and I grinned. Laxus seemed to be acting less and less tsundere towards Bicks. Especially after our first time together in the castle.

"You guys are so cute it makes me sick." Evergreen said, making a face at us "Anyway, I'm broke so I think I'm gonna take a mission for some jewel."

"I'll join you Evergreen. I'm going to need some money as well for a new apartment." Freed said, "You three enjoy your date. Let us know if you end up going on a mission."

"Sounds good." Laxus responded, nodding to the rune mage.

"Be safe and keep us updated!" I said, waving to Freed as he began walking away.

"We will." Evergreen hugged me, and waved to Laxus and Bickslow as she went and joined Freed downstairs to help pick out a mission for the two of them.

"So, you guys ready to leave?" I asked as I turned back to my boyfriends. "I'm dying to get home."

They nodded, and Bicks smiled brightly "Lead the way my love."

I blushed, hiding my embarrassment as I turned to walk down the stairs. The two men followed me, and we waved to the other guild members as we left for the day.

"I'll have to run to the store real quick before we can make dinner." I said as we made our way down the paved streets. "There's not gonna be anything in my fridge except beer."

"That's fine," Bickslow said "We need to stop by Laxus's house to drop off our shit. I'll probably change out of my armor too."

"How about you take my things Bicks and I'll help (Y/n) with groceries?" Laxus responded, handing his pack and house keys to the seith mage. "Grab me a change of clothes too."

"Oh, you don't have to do that Laxus!" I waved him off "I don't really need help, you can go home with Bickslow first and just meet me at my house."

"Too bad, it's already happening." Laxus said and I glared at him as he began walking towards the market.

Bickslow chuckled as his babies moved in front of him and he jumped up onto them, carrying Laxus's pack under his arm "I'll be quick babe, don't miss me too much!"

I could only smile, rolling my eyes "Dork."

He winked, and I turned away to catch up to Laxus. We walked hand-in-hand in comfortable silence, enjoying our alone time. The townspeople watched our interaction, whispering quietly. They all had some idea by now of our relationship. We'd been totally open about it, and rumors about wizards spread like rapid fire, thanks mostly to Sorcerer Weekly. Like Evergreen said, it was only a matter of time before our relationship announcement ended up in the magazine. Honestly, now that the games were over I expected Jason to come knocking down Fairy Tail's doors any day for interviews.

Laxus and I picked up a few essentials at the market, along with stuff to make pasta for tonight. He tried to carry all the bags, but I refused to let him. Instead, I carried a few along with the more delicate items like eggs. We made our way to my house, and I unlocked the door to open it for Laxus. He'd been in my house once before when we moved the Thunder Legion's belongings, and headed straight for my kitchen. I followed, turning lights on and setting my bags on the counter as Laxus did the same. I quickly put everything I wouldn't need tonight away as Laxus watched me. His gaze was piercing, and I found myself blushing as his eyes followed my every moment. It was getting hard to concentrate with him watching me so intensely.

Suddenly he chuckled, and the blush on my cheeks grew darker. I pouted, glaring at him when he grinned slyly "Is there a problem?"

"Nope, just enjoying the view."

I rolled my eyes, fighting a grin "Take a picture, it'll last longer."

"Trust me, I'm engraving this into my mind." Laxus replied with a smirk "But I think it'd be better if you were wearing less."

I bit my lip, his crude words sending sparks to my insides. "S-shut up."

He moved towards me, caging me against the counter top. I stared up at him, anticipating more teasing. However, he suddenly had a serious look on his face as he gazed down at me. My heart was pounding loudly as Laxus caressed my cheek . "I never thought I'd enjoy the thought of settling down, but seeing you like this makes me think of a future where we're cooking together, in our own home. I think I-"

"Knock, knock!" Bickslow shouted from my front door, and the moment was ruined. Laxus backed off and I reluctantly watched him go, wishing he'd had a chance to finish that thought. Hearing him speak that way made my heart race. I really did see a future with Laxus, and of course Bickslow too. But Laxus was holding back his feelings every time the seith mage came around. We really did need alone time, and soon. If we could, I'm sure our relationship will get even stronger, and Laxus won't be afraid to share things with both of us, _together_.

Bickslow came inside, carrying a small neon green and black overnight bag, and had on gray sweatpants and a black t-shirt. His visor was on his face, but he pulled it off as he walked in. He tossed the visor and his bag into the living room as he walked up to us, his babies trailing behind him. I began chopping up garlic and other ingredients and the seith mage grinned as he looked around the kitchen. "Oooh, spaghetti? That sounds so good right now."

I grinned "Yup, I hope you like it spicy!"

"Yes, this is why I love you Stormy!" Bickslow cackled "Spice it up baby!" His babies loudly repeated "Spice it up, spice it up!"

I nodded, "So, what movie should we watch? We still haven't decided."

"Laxus, we should watch our favorite!" Bickslow said, elbowing the dragon slayer. "I think you'll like it (Y/n)."

I gaped, surprised the two men had the same favorite movie. "What is it?"

"Man, I haven't seen it since before my expulsion." Laxus chuckled, running his hands through his spiky hair and grinning. If he was disappointed about being interrupted earlier, he didn't show it. "Did you bring it?"

"Hey, I asked a question!" I glared and Bickslow laughed.

"You'll see Stormy." Bickslow said, walking to the living room to set up the movie.

"Here, I'll help you cook." Laxus turned my attention back to dinner, and I began getting out pots and pans. I filled the pot with water for the noodles, and Laxus readied the pan for the sausage. We moved alongside each other well, working in unison. I couldn't help a laugh from bubbling up, filled with joy.

"So, how did you get so good at cooking?" I asked, smiling at my stoic boyfriend.

He shrugged "Guess I just picked it up. Growing up, I never really had anyone to make me meals. I got tired of always paying for food, so I tried it myself. Ended up getting good at it, I guess."

"You're so humble. I love that about you."

Laxus simply grinned as he focused on browning the sausage. "Yeah, getting your ass handed to you will do that."

We continued on with our cooking, working quickly. I began chopping the spices for the sauce as Laxus finished the meat. As we cooked, Bickslow came up to watch us after readying the movie. We all talked, enjoying the moment to slow down and spend time with each other. I realized how simple something like this was, but it felt incredible to me. After everything we'd been through, it was nice to come home to these two. I hoped that we would eventually move in together, but knew it would be awhile before we got to that step. Although, Laxus had expressed interest in a future like that. At the very least, I knew we'd all be spending lots of time together before then.

"Alright, what movie are you guys making me watch?" I asked a bit later as we all sat down in the living room with our bowls of food. Bickslow grabbed the remote for the lacrima TV and started the movie.

"It's called Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny." Laxus told me, and I nearly choked on my first bite of pasta.

"Really?" I threw my head back and laughed "You would!"

I knew all about that movie. It had been in one of Bickslow's boxes that I kept. I watched it many times over the years. It was about two middle-aged wannabe rockers on a quest to become the greatest using a demonic pick. It was full of rock music, dirty jokes and drug use. Of course it would be their favorite movie. Hell, it was honestly in my top 5, at the very least.

"I knew you'd like it." Bickslow cackled as it began. He took a large bite of pasta, sighing "Ugh, this is so good. Fucking wifey material, amirite Laxus?"

The dragon slayer grinned, "Definitely."

"Yeah well Laxus helped, you gonna wife him too?" I teased, fighting a blush. Bickslow merely shrugged, shoveling more food into his mouth before replying.

"Sure."

I laughed as Laxus deadpanned, punching the seith mage as he cackled. The movie began, and we watched it as we enjoyed our dinner. Laxus got up for multiple bowls, having made two boxes of the pasta. Even Bickslow had a third bowl, which he only ended up finishing halfway. We put aside our dishes when we finished eating, cuddling closer to each other as we continued the comedy movie. Bickslow's babies settled in our laps, quiet. Outside, the clouds rolling in rumbled for a while before eventually dropping rain down over the city.

"This is romantic as fuck." Bickslow said as he nuzzled into me. I was lying against Laxus and the seith mage was cuddled up to my side.

I giggled, running my hands through his blue hair as we watched the main characters face off in a rock battle against Satan. Who just so happened to be the lead singer of one of my favorite bands. 'Satan' was humping the air as he sang about how he was going to take one of the men to Hell and make him his sex slave. "Yeah, totally. This song really sets the mood."

"Hilariously obscene metal music aside," Laxus spoke "He's right. I think this date beats mine."

"Guess I have a lot of planning to do for mine!" Bickslow said, rubbing my leg affectionately as we neared the ending scene.

I smiled, and as the movie ended with the two heroes smoking from a bong made of Satan's horn, we could hear the loud thunder outside. "We should step out for a smoke and watch the storm, what'd'ya think?"

"Agreed! Let me use the restroom real quick, I'll meet you guys out there." Bickslow said, standing up quickly and walking down to the bathroom. I stood, with Laxus putting one hand on my hip as he stepped beside me. We walked out onto the back porch and I leaned against the wooden railing, watching the lightning ripple across the sky. My porch was modest, with a small sitting area. I often came out here to star gaze or enjoy a stormy night, and smoke.

"Sometimes I forget you love storms as much as I do." Laxus said, standing behind me and wrapping his arms around me. I felt his deep intake of breath and smiled at his serene expression.

"I love all storms, not just thunderstorms." I responded, a small grin on my face "But I guess lightning does have a special place inside my heart."

"Oh yeah?" He smirked, pulling me closer.

I nodded, glancing back at him. His eyes were hooded, and I licked my lips as I moved to kiss him. He held me as we moved our lips together, our tongues meeting in a sweet kiss.

"(Y/n), I wanted to say something…" Laxus muttered, pulling back.

I opened my eyes, seeing his serious expression. I could only cock my head in question and he opened his mouth to speak. It seemed he decided against saying anything though, and he sighed before pulling away. I pouted as he once again stopped when he was trying to tell me something. Bickslow came out then, and Laxus went back to his usual stoical self as he nodded in greeting to the man. I wondered what he was about to say. It seemed like it was pretty important, and I wondered if he had stopped because he didn't want to say it in front of Bicks. I pouted, and turned to the seith mage as he handed me a lit blunt.

"Oh, going all out eh?" I said, deciding to move on and give Laxus time to tell me when he was ready.

"Only the best for my lovers." Bickslow winked.

We smoked, standing and staring out at the pouring rain. I kept glancing at Laxus, who was simply watching the lightning in the sky. This was his element, so of course he was probably soaking it in. However, I realized I'd never seen him eat his element like the other slayers, and wondered if he ever did it. Not being able to keep my curiosity down, I spoke,

"So, Laxus," He looked at me and I continued "How do you eat lightning anyway? I see Gajeel and Natsu just grabbing their element and munching it, but I don't think I've ever seen you do that."

"Yeah, I don't get to often." He said "It has to strike down in my vicinity, which is pretty shitty since it's usually quick and also pouring rain. Usually I just absorb it from the air instead of eating it, like I did during the dragon battles, or when you get mad and start sparking. Besides, I really only need it when I'm low on power."

"But Natsu always says fire is tasty." I said as I was handed the blunt that was nearly finished. Laxus reminded me of all the times he had absorbed my lightning when I would lose control of it, and I smile fondly at the memories. I quickly hit the blunt, holding the smoke in as I ask "Is lightning?"

He chuckled "Yeah it is. It's like a thousand little jolts of incredible flavor."

"You should try (Y/n)'s!" Bickslow smirked "If it's half as good as how she tastes, it will probably be amazing."

I blushed, noticing a similar flush on Laxus's cheeks. He grinned as he glanced over at me. "I guess I could go for dessert, what do you think?"

I could only bite my lip at the slayers intense and hungry gaze "Sure…"

Bickslow takes the blunt, finishing it off as he watches us. I focus my magic power into forming a small lightning bolt, watching as Laxus gulped it down the way Natsu did with his fire. It was interesting to watch, and I giggled at the dragon slayer's delighted expression. He seemed to be chewing, little jolts of lightning sparking from between his teeth. Eventually, he stopped and grinned.

"Fuck, that _is_ good." Laxus groaned "You're the best girlfriend ever (Y/n)."

"Thanks." I chuckled "I've offered before, but any time you need a power up or you simply wanna eat some lightning just ask me, alright?"

He nodded, and we all walked back inside. It was getting late, well past 9 o'clock. Bickslow stretched, yawning loudly. "I say we take a bath!"

"I doubt we could all fit." I giggled, looking at my two hulking boyfriends. "My tub may be bigger than average, but you two are giants."

"We'll just have to cuddle up to each other." Bickslow winked, pulling me towards him. I bit my lip at his sultry expression, and knew there was no denying the seith mage. He grinned, moving backwards as he pulled me to my bathroom.

This apartment only had one bathroom, which had white marble counters and tiled flooring with black cupboards. It was almost as big as my spare room, and had a huge glass door shower and a large tub next to it. When I rented the place, I had chosen it primarily because of this room. I loved to soak in the tub after a long mission. Laxus filled the bath with hot water as Bickslow took off his shirt and I couldn't fight the redness from rising to my cheeks. This was a pretty intimate setting, and it sent a thrill of excitement through me. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Laxus grin, unbuttoning his shirt as he stalked towards me. The tub filled slowly, and I tried to ignore the man's hungry gaze as I put some bubbles in the water.

"You gonna undress?" Laxus asked, turning me towards him "Or do you need some help?"

His shirt was opened up to reveal his muscled chest and black tribal tattoo, his guild mark showing proudly on his side. I licked my lips, reaching up to gently slide my hands up across his skin, shoving his shirt off fully as he reached under mine to pull it off. It fell to the floor along with the dragon slayers top, and Bickslow moved behind me. He unsnapped my bra and I slid it off as he quickly ran his hands down to my shorts. Laxus gripped my breasts as the seith mage slid off my shorts and panties simultaneously. I was panting heavily at this point, wetness coating my folds in anticipation. With trembling fingers, I unbuttoned Laxus's pants and ran my hand lightly over his bulge as I did. He pinched my nipples in return, and I cried out. Bickslow stood, dropping his own pants as I slid Laxus's off his hips. The two men's briefs followed afterwards, and all of our clothing piled up on the tiled floor.

The tub was finally filled, and Laxus turned off the water. He stepped in first, quickly sinking into the hot bath. His groan of satisfaction made me giggle as I carefully followed. Bickslow slapped my ass as I got in, and I yelped.

"I can't wait to feel your ass when it's all slippery and soapy." He smirked, moving beside me as I settled between the two men. There was a small bench wrapping around three sides, and it was almost like a hot tub. Still, with all three of us occupying it, we were forced close together.

"Keep those wandering hands to yourself Bickslow." Laxus grunted, laying his head back and closing his eyes.

"Awh, you sure you don't want a back rub boss?" He teased "I know you love when Freed does it."

I raised my eyebrows in surprise, snickering "Really babe?"

"Shut it." Laxus scowled, ignoring my gaze "He insists. Besides that, he's good at it and I ain't one to turn down a back rub, guy or not."

I could only giggle "I'll have to remember that. Maybe I'll take some classes and get _really_ good at it. That way after rough missions I can do it for you."

"Hell yes." Laxus grinned "I would love you forever."

I blushed at his casual declaration, glad the heat from the bath had all of us looking flushed anyway.

"Hey, I like back rubbings too." Bickslow pouted, slipping his hands around me. I leaned back into him immediately, the soapy water making his hard muscles slick.

"We'll just have to have a massaging conga line." I giggled as the two men agreed earnestly. Bickslow held me close, running his hands over me under the soapy water. It felt amazing and I sighed in bliss.

"Mmmh, you smell so amazing." Laxus muttered, lifting his head to look at me hungrily. He shifted in his seat, pulling me between his legs and forcing me onto my knees.

I bit my lip, running my hands over his chest as Bickslow's hands moved to mine. The water made my breasts slippery, and he played with them gently. I could only giggle at his almost innocent grin as he held them in his hands.

"Having fun?"

"Yup." He said, waggling his tongue at me.

"Hey, what did I say about your wandering hands?" Laxus teased as Bickslow accidentally bumped the man's knee during his ministrations on my breasts.

"Sorry boss! You feeling left out?" Bickslow grinned, releasing me to run his hands up the larger man's thighs. The movement pushed me closer to Laxus, his hardening member brushing against me under the bubbles.

"Fuck." Laxus said, parting his legs as Bickslow continued his journey. I could not see what was going on, but felt Bickslow's hand as it moved between me and Laxus's cock. It seemed Laxus didn't mind the seith mage's hands as much as he pretended to.

"Shit, this is hot as fuck." I said, watching Laxus's facial expressions. He was usually so hard to read, but in the heat of the moment he was an open book. I loved it.

Being held between the two as Bickslow pleasured the other man had my pulse quickening, wanting to join. This was the first time I'd seen them interact without me fully involved though, and it was exciting. Bickslow was taking charge this time, almost dominating our boyfriend. I was content to let him continue, watching Laxus's sexy face as he grit his teeth. I almost couldn't believe Laxus was letting this happen, much less enjoying it as much as he was.

"God, your cock is so huge boss." Bickslow muttered, leaning his head down to my neck "I bet this feels amazing inside your pussy huh (Y/n)?"

My insides clenched at his lewd words and I nodded breathlessly "Yes…"

"I'd love to feel it in my ass." Bickslow said suddenly, staring straight at Laxus. The man opened his eyes in surprise, looking intently at him. I bit my lip as I imaged the two men doing that, and found myself getting wet at the thought.

"Apparently (Y/n) would like that too. She's getting even more turned on." Laxus grinned, and I realized he'd moved his intense gaze to me. I wondered just how much his dragon senses could pick up if he could sense my arousal even over the scented bubble bath.

"Oh yeah?" Bickslow chuckled, moving closer to me and nibbling on my neck,"I bet you would enjoy seeing that. You're a freak Stormy, I love that about you."

He slid his own member to rest between my slick thighs. I hummed, pressing my ass against him, and my chest pushed fully against the cock he was jerking in front of me. Bickslow released the hard member, grabbing my tits and bending me over further. Laxus instantly moved his cock between my breasts, and Bickslow pinched at my nipples as he pressed them together. The man in front of me began to thrust his dick between my tits as Bickslow positioned his member at my core. I felt the tip pressing against me, and Laxus leaned down to swallow my moans in a kiss as the seith mage pushed inside me.

"Shit, I would love to eat your wet pussy while Laxus fucks my ass." Bickslow practically growled, "How does that sound baby?"

I was unable to respond to his question with Laxus devouring my mouth. The best I could manage was a desperate moan. Bickslow began rocking into me, slowly at first, and I pulled away from Laxus to catch my breath. The water started sloshing around and I had to lift my face to avoid being hit. Laxus stood, seeing my discomfort, and sat along the edge of the tub. His hand instantly went to my head, grabbing my hair and forcing my mouth around his hard cock. It was wet and a bit soapy, but I hardly cared. I rested my hands on his thighs and quickly began licking and sucking Laxus as Bickslow continued to thrust into my center. He gripped my hips, pulling me to stand. My ass stuck out of the water, the cool air hitting my heated flesh and causing a shiver to go through me.

We continued to move together, not in any hurry to reach our endings. I wanted this night with my boyfriends to last. It seemed the two men had the same idea as me. Laxus did not buck his hips into my mouth like he usually would, and Bickslow moved gently against me, stroking my walls and building up slowly. The water was nearly cold now, and I found myself shivering. I pulled my mouth away to suggest we move to my room.

"Good idea." Bickslow said, pulling out and smacking my ass. "Let me just grab something real quick and then I'll join you two in the bed."

He grabbed a towel, drying off and throwing it around his waist before he padded towards my living room. I drained the tub and got out, handing Laxus a towel as I dried myself off. Laxus wiped the water from his body quickly, throwing his towel on the ground and moving towards me as I finished with mine. He kissed me, and I wrapped myself around him when he grabbed my ass and lifted me. We continued kissing as he carefully walked into my room, throwing me down on the bed when we finally reached it.

I bit my lip as he moved his large body over top of me "God, I love when you toss me around."

He chuckled, caging me in and running his finger down my chest "I love it when you let me take control of you."

"If you like that, you're gonna love this Laxus." Bickslow spoke from the doorway, and we both looked over at him. My eyes went wide in shock as I noticed the handcuffs dangling from his finger. They weren't the fuzzy kind, and would surely hurt if I struggled against them. That simply made me even more eager to start. Bickslow saw my expression and chuckled as he stalked towards us "Yes baby, that's what I like to see."

Laxus grinned, moving back as Bickslow tossed his towel off to the side and joined us on the bed. I laid there, shivering with anticipation. It was a small step towards some of the things we'd talked about doing, and I was excited. Laxus watched me intently as Bickslow commanded me to hold out my hands. I obeyed, and he slapped one cuff around my wrist, pulling both my arms up towards my headboard. He looped the cuffs around one of the metal bars before placing the other side on my free wrist. I was officially trapped, completely at the mercy of these two sinfully sexy men.

"Laxus..." Bickslow turned to the older man, who had been staring sharply at me. Laxus looked to Bickslow as he spoke "I want you to take charge. And I know I'm asking a lot, but I really do want you to enter me tonight."

"... Do you have lube?" Laxus asked after a moment, subtly letting the seith mage know he was okay with the request.

"I have some in the top drawer of my nightstand." I offered, and Bickslow grinned.

"That's my good girl."

The statement made me blush, secretly delighted by his praise. He watched my reaction curiously for a moment before turning back to Laxus as he grabbed the lube. The dragon slayer was grinning darkly, begin his transition into dominant. "I know exactly how I want this to go."

He ordered Bickslow to get onto his hands and knees in front of me. The seith mage happily obeyed, grinning up at me as his mouth hovered over my core. I could only watch, desperate to move my hips closer, but knowing I could get in trouble for that. Laxus was leading this night, and I'd have to follow his directions.

"Bicks, I want you to tease (Y/n) until she's dripping wet and desperate." Laxus declared, and I gasped. "No touching her pussy until I tell you to. Until then, I want you only using your hands. And I'm going to stretch you out for my cock."

Bickslow looked at me with a sinister grin, excited for what was about to happen. I bit my lip, already feeling incredibly wet. However, there was no telling how long I'd have to wait before finding release. It was so fucking exhilarating.

"You must ask permission to come (Y/n)." Laxus said as he poured lube onto Bickslow's ass. The seith mage sucked in a breath at the cold liquid, and Laxus set the small bottle to the side. "And you may not find release until I allow it, got that?"

I looked into his stormy grey eyes in shock "Y-yes."

He said nothing more, instead focusing his attention on Bickslow. He used two fingers to spread the lube before sliding them inside him. Bickslow moaned at the intrusion, before he lifted one hand and ran it up the inside of my thigh. I opened my legs wider, desperate to feel his touch on my core. However, he'd been told not to, so instead his hand passed over that spot and made its way to my breast. He began kneading my left breast, rubbing his thumb across my nipple. I moaned, and Bickslow moaned with me as Laxus stretched him further with three thick fingers. He began pumping into the seith mage, and Bickslow moved his hand further up to shove two of his digits into my mouth. I greedily sucked, sliding my tongue around them.

"You're such a dirty slut (Y/n)." Bickslow grinned, gripping my jaw and holding my mouth open. "I bet you'd give anything to have my cock in your mouth instead of my fingers."

He pulled the wet digits back, returning to my nipples. He dropped down onto one elbow and groaned as Laxus began fondling his balls while he finger-fucked Bickslow's ass. The seith mage was surely prepped well enough, but Laxus wanted to prolong our torture. I watched the two intently, feeling myself dripping onto the bed. Laxus grinned down at me and I shuddered as Bickslow ran his hand down past my core.

"Fuck, Laxus." Bickslow moaned, turning back to look at the hulking blonde "Please, I really want you inside me."

Laxus pulled his fingers out before smacking the man's ass "The you better hope you're prepped enough, cuz I ain't taking it slow on you."

"God, please don't!" He groaned, turning back to me as Laxus poured lube on his cock and spread it over the large member. I watched as he moved against Bickslow, pressing into his ass. The seith mage cried out as Laxus began pushing inside him. He grabbed my breast, gripping it tightly before slapping his hand against my nipple. I gasped at the pain that easily morphed into pleasure. Laxus was pumping his hips against Bickslow now, rocking the man as he pounded into him.

"Eat her pussy Bickslow." Laxus demanded, gripping his hips "Suck her clit until she screams, but if she comes without my permission you're both getting punished."

Bickslow simply grinned, thrilled at the challenge. I wasn't sure if he would push me past the peak before Laxus gave his permission, just so he could get the punishment. It seemed like something he might do. He kept his eyes locked on mine as his mouth moved closer to my center. He turned his head slightly, kissing my thigh before running his tongue along my skin. It barely brushed against my core, and I opened my legs further, desperate for his touch. He moved his hand towards my pussy, lightly running his fingers along the outside. I whimpered, tired of the teasing.

"Please Bickslow, touch me." I moaned, pulling on the handcuffs, and the seith mage groaned as Laxus roughly snapped his hips.

Finally, it seemed Bickslow was done with torturing me as he ran his fingers along my wet folds before sliding two digits inside me. I threw my head back, relieved to finally feel his touch. He began pumping his fingers and quickly slid his tongue out to tease my clit. Laxus drove deep into Bickslow, and the seith mage's mouth was pressed firmly against me as he was pushed forward. He began moaning as Laxus moved faster. I hopelessly pulled at my bindings, wanting to grip Bickslow's wild blue locks as I bucked my hips against his mouth. He was easily driving me to orgasm, and I cried out as he sucked on my clit.

"Oh god..." I sighed, shuddering as Bickslow's tongue flicked at my bundle of nerves "Laxus, please let me come!"

" _No_." Laxus growled, quickening his pace, and Bickslow began moving his tongue faster as well.

"Fuck, please!" I nearly screamed in frustration, struggling against the handcuffs as I desperately tried to hold back. Bickslow's fingers began hitting that sweet spot inside me as he looked up. His eyes were dark as he grinned at me.

"She's not gonna last much longer boss." Bickslow muttered huskily "I can feel her pussy quivering already."

"Too bad." Laxus huffed, "She's not coming until I say so."

I groaned, biting my lip as Bickslow resumed his ministrations on my clit. He moaned against me as Laxus moved to the side, giving him room to stroke the seith mage's erection as he rocked into him. At this point I assumed Laxus was planning to have us all finish at once. The realization made me curse. The dragon slayer had incredible stamina, and I wasn't sure I could out last him. However, he was pounding into Bickslow desperately as he jerked him, and it seemed he was nearing his peak. Bickslow was a moaning mess, being penetrated and having his cock expertly stroked.

" _Laxus_..." I moaned, unable to say anything else.

"Just a little longer babe." He said, his eyes closed tightly as he panted "Fuck, so close!"

I sobbed, overwhelmed with pleasure and desperate not to come before given permission. At this point, Bickslow sped up even more, pounding his fingers into me as his wicked tongue flicked my bundle of nerves. I pulled tightly on the cuffs, using the pain to distract me. "Fuck, fuck, fuck! Laxus, _please_ -!"

I closed my eyes tightly as I cried out, barely holding on before Laxus groaned "Yes! Come (Y/n), soak Bickslow's face with your cum!"

He squeezed the seith mage tightly, and I came with a scream as Bickslow moaned around my clit. Laxus gripped his hips tightly as he drove into him one final time, releasing inside his ass. Bickslow came from the rough treatment of his cock, his cum coating the sheets. I quivered as the waves of my orgasm slowly subsided, and Bickslow pulled his dripping fingers out of me. We were quiet for a moment, the only sound being our heavy breathing. I'd never come so hard in my entire life, and my body felt weary despite not doing anything. Bickslow dropped his head, groaning as our boyfriend gently pulled out of him. The seith mage flopped over onto his back, avoiding the juices on the sheets. I wearily opened my eyes, slowly coming back to reality. My arms were killing me, and I had struggled hard against the cuffs. My wrists were definitely going to be sore, if not bruised.

"Bicks, keys." Laxus mumbled, standing from the bed.

The seith mage sat up, cursing "Shit, I'm sorry (Y/n). I should have taken care of that right away. They're in the front pocket of my bag."

I couldn't even respond, my mouth was too dry and my mind was fuzzy. I'd never experienced such an intense scene like that before. It was exhausting, but I felt so satisfied and content.

Laxus quickly left the room, grabbing the keys from the bag in the living room and returning. Bickslow moved to my side as our boyfriend unlocked one part of the handcuffs. I couldn't move my arm, and Bickslow gently did it for me. He rubbed out the aching muscles of my right arm as Laxus grabbed my left hand and removed the cuffs. He kissed my wrist gently and I smiled wearily at them, grateful for their tenderness.

"How are you feeling?" Laxus asked, brushing some wet strands of hair off my forehead.

I licked my lips, my voice hoarse as I responded "Good. Thirsty, and tired, but _so_ amazing."

The two men chuckled, and Bickslow kissed me before standing. "I'll go get us some water, don't miss me too much."

He left the room, and I looked over to Laxus as the man settled into my side. He was watching me with concern and fondness clearly displayed on his features, and I smiled. "You're so amazing."

He grinned, leaning down to kiss me deeply. We said nothing more, simply conveying our feelings through our kiss. Soon Bickslow returned with three glasses, but stopped in the doorway to watch us. He had a tender smile on his face, easily seeing things that the two of us would never be able to. Our souls were deeply intertwining as we kissed passionately.

Eventually Laxus pulled back, laying a sweet kiss on my forehead before turning to Bickslow. The seith mage walked into the room, beaming as he handed us the water. I greedily drank mine down before laying back on the bed. Although, my leg brushed against a wet patch on the sheets and I grimaced.

"We should probably clean up a bit." I chuckled, rolling away from the dirty spots. My legs wobbled as I tried to stand, and the two men watched me warily.

"I can help." Laxus said "What do you need me to do?"

I shook my head "I'm fine, really. I'm just gonna go grab some new sheets and change the bedding."

I walked out of the room, heading to my linen closet. I was butt naked, but I didn't mind being in the nude around Laxus and Bickslow. My arms protested as I lifted them to grab a clean pair of sheets from one of the shelves. Before I could get close, Laxus came up behind me and easily grabbed the bedding down. I pouted at him and he merely shrugged, kissing my cheek before he walked away. Bickslow was pulling the dirty sheets from the bed, tossing them to the side before he began helping Laxus put on the new bedding.

"You guys don't have to do all this ya know." I said, crossing my arms over my chest as I watched them from the doorway. "I could have done it."

"We want to." Bickslow responded "Trust me, I know how it feels to be cuffed. Your arms and wrists are probably sore and hurting. So, let us take care of you alright?"

I rolled my eyes, smiling reluctantly "Yeah, yeah. Fine."

"Good." Bickslow laughed, and the two men finished preparing the bed. Bickslow piled the pillows near the middle, motioning for me to come lay down. "I think we're all ready for sleep now."

I giggled, nodding in agreement. After quickly turning off the lights, I walked over to the bed, crawling up the middle and laying down. My boyfriends immediately moved to either side of me, and Laxus threw the blanket over us. We cuddled up together, enjoying the closeness. I easily fell into a deep and pleasant sleep, feeling more satiated than I thought possible.

 _Man it feels good to be back._

* * *

A/n: _Well, that sure was something! Hope the lemon wasn't totally awful. This chapter fought me so hard, seriously took longer to finish than all the others. Then again, at over 8,000 words, it's longer than any of the other chapters too. The next few chapters will be random missions and whatnot before we get to the Tartaros arc, which I'm so excited for!_

 _Also, there will be an increase in lemons, just in case that bothers anyone. I wont be putting any more warnings beforehand either._

 _Let me know what you think! Reviews make the world go 'round :P_


	17. Chapter 17

_Rolling snare drums echo_

 _The rain sounds like applause, yeah_

 _I finally found you_

 _The one that I've been waiting for_

 _I finally found what I'd already stopped looking for_

* * *

The next morning, I wake up to the sound of rain still pouring outside, and the smell of breakfast. I shift slightly and feel Bickslow still sleeping next to me, which meant that Laxus was cooking. _That's good, I don't have to worry about my kitchen going up in flames._ The thought makes me giggle sleepily, and I carefully slide out of bed. Bickslow grunts before turning over and settling deeper into his sleep. I smile fondly at the seith mage before walking into my bathroom. I quickly use the toilet before brushing my hair and throwing on one of my over-sized t-shirts. Afterwards I make my way to the kitchen, enjoying the sight of Laxus wearing just his briefs as he cooks.

"Good morning." I speak quietly, walking up to him and running my hands along his back "You didn't have to cook, I could have done it."

"Mmh, but I wanted to." Laxus responded, glancing back at me "How're your wrists?"

I glance down to check, seeing minor bruising. They didn't hurt much, and the soreness in my arms was nearly nonexistent "They're fine. I didn't injure them too much last night."

"That's good."

"Have you heard from Freed and Evergreen yet?" I asked, sitting at one of the bar stools and watching as Laxus made massive amounts of eggs and sausage, along with diced potatoes and toast. "How's their job going?"

"Yeah, Freed called this morning." Laxus said "He said the client left out some important information in the flier, so it's gonna take them longer to complete than they thought."

"Do they need help?" I frowned, worried. Laxus simply shook my head, calming my fears.

"They'll be alright, it's nothing crazy. But we should probably head out on a job ourselves since they'll be gone for a bit."

I rested my head in my hand and sighed. I'd been looking forward to going on a big mission with everyone, but oh well. That just meant more alone time with Laxus and Bickslow. "Alright, yeah. Maybe we can take a quick mission and be back around the same time they get done."

Laxus simply nodded, and started to grab plates for the food he made. I watched him as he dished up the breakfast, giving himself a huge helping. It was such a simple morning, but I felt so content. My heart felt so light, but completely full to the point of bursting. Never in a million years would I have expected to be here, in my home, with a half-naked Laxus cooking breakfast as Bickslow slept soundly in my bed. I was seriously beyond lucky. It hasn't been very long since we made our relationship official, but we've been through so much. After everything was said and done, I knew I wanted nothing more than to return to the arms of my two boyfriends. Always. My heart skipped a beat when I realized how strongly I felt about both men. I loved them and trusted them with my entire being. There was no denying it now. I felt the urge to share my feelings, and spoke before I even knew what I was doing.

"Laxus…" He stopped and looked at me questioningly. I simply smiled, deciding to let my heart lead the way. It may be sudden, but I was tired of waiting to tell Laxus how I felt. _Why have I been holding back anyway?_ He once told me that our lives as mages were dangerous, we had enemies around every corner, and that was true. There was no telling what could happen to us. So when we had the chance at happiness, there was no point in holding back. "I just want to let you know that you really mean a lot to me… You've become such an incredible man and I'm happy to be a part of your life. We've only been together a couple weeks, but we've been through so much. I don't know why it's taken me so long to say this, but I'm tired of ignoring how I feel. I love you Laxus, and I want you to know it. I love you so much."

He stood there, staring at me with wide eyes. For a moment I feared that I shouldn't have said that, but then his face softened. He dropped the spatula he was using to plate the eggs, and came up to me. My heart was pounding in my chest as he pulled me off the chair and into his arms, and without a word he kissed me. I wrapped my arms around his neck, sliding my fingers into his hair. He gripped me tightly, as if he never wanted to let go. After a moment he pulled back, whispering "I love you too (Y/n). I've been wanting to tell you for a little while now but couldn't find the right moment to say it. I love you, and I couldn't imagine spending my life with any girl but you."

We kissed again, and again, and again, until the food grew cold. The rain pounded outside, the soundtrack to our intimate moment. It couldn't have been more perfect. After a while, I began feeling lightheaded and giddy. I pulled back, giggling breathlessly as Laxus playfully nipped and kissed my neck. He was wearing a grin on his face, and I ran my thumb down across his scarred cheek.

"Why did it take us so long to admit our feelings?" I asked, chuckling as I looked into his grey-blue eyes.

"Because you two are emotionally handicap."

We look over at the sudden remark to see Bickslow walking out of the bedroom, his hair disheveled. His babies trailed along behind him, and he'd put some sweatpants on before coming out. He rolls his eyes at our dismayed expressions as he continues "I was wondering how long it would take you guys to finally get your shit together and tell each other how you felt."

I tried to frown at the seith mage, but one look at Laxus had me giggling. The dragon slayer simply shrugged "He's got a point."

"Damn right I do." Bickslow chuckled as he walked into the kitchen, "Now, not to ruin the moment, but I am starving. How about we reheat this food and eat breakfast?"

I smiled, and Laxus kissed me one last time before letting me go. We finished plating the food, heating it up and talking playfully with each other as we did. It wasn't long before the three of us sat down to eat, and I looked at my boyfriends with delight. Although, I was interested in something Bickslow had said earlier, and couldn't contain my curiosity. As we ate, I asked "So Bicks, what made you realize how we felt about each other before either of us had?"

"Your souls." Bickslow said simply as he took a bite of toast "I could easily see how they had started to mold together when you two kissed last night. It was actually really beautiful."

"Do your guys's souls do that too?"

"Nah, our love for each other is different." He responded "It's more like two different pieces completing each other, similar to yin and yang. Whereas you and me, or you and Laxus, our souls begin to mesh together, nearly becoming a new, unique entity."

His explanation was fascinating, and I smiled at him in admiration. "Your magic is so beautiful Bicks."

He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly "Eh, most people think it's kinda creepy to read souls."

"No, she's right." Laxus said "It's incredible."

Bickslow grinned, his cheeks flushing under the praise "Jeez, all these lovey-dovey, mushy feelings going around today. It's overwhelming."

We all laughed, content to continue with the blissful high in our relationship. I supposed after all we'd gone through with the games and the dragons, we were feeling so relieved to be together, enjoying a simple breakfast.

"So, we going a mission today?" Bickslow asked as we finished eating and I began washing dishes.

"Yeah, Laxus said that Freed and Ever are gonna be gone for a bit so I think we can take a quick mission to get some jewel." I responded.

"Sweet, I'm so excited to get out and start working!" He grinned, stretching his arms over his head "It's been too long."

"We should probably head to my place and get ready." Laxus said.

I nodded, glancing back at the two "Yeah, that's a good idea. I can meet you guys at the guild if you want? It'll probably be in an hour or two, is that alright?"

"Works for me." Laxus said, coming up and kissing my cheek "Prepare to be gone for probably three days, no camping gear."

"No problem!" I smiled, leaning into the kiss before turning back to the sink "I'll see you guys at Fairy Tail in a little."

"Careful on your way to the guild." Laxus said "You never know what kind of crazy ass people are out there."

I rolled my eyes as I finished the dishes and dried my hands "I think I'll survive."

Bickslow chuckled as Laxus scowled at me, and the seith mage quickly kissed me before gathering up his belongings. The two men got dressed and I walked them to the door as they left. Then, I finished up in the kitchen and started getting ready. After quickly showering, I brushed my hair and put on a light amount of makeup. I then go to my closet to choose what I wanted to wear. It had to be cute, but comfortable since we'd be travelling. Eventually I decide on a black cotton dress with half sleeves and an upside down heart cut out on the chest. I pair it with (f/c) shoes and a belt.

Once I finished getting dressed, I started to pack my essentials along with a couple outfits. Like usual, I pack a bit extra. You always had to be prepared as a mage to have your clothes ruined in a fight, or any other crazy stuff. Along with my regular clothes, I pack a bathing suit and a pair of thigh-high tights. When I'm all ready, I glance at the clock. It's been a little over an hour, so I decide to hurry to the guild. I lock up my house, taking a moment to look over everything with a smile. Just recently, I was spending time here with my boyfriends after being away for so long. It was nice, and I was a bit sad to be leaving again. However, I really needed the jewel. Can't keep my house if I have no money for bills, after all.

I nod with resolve before turning and walking down the front steps, my pack slung over my shoulder. I get clear of the building before I teleport to the guild.

When I walk through the large doors, I see that there's barely anyone here. Most people had already left for jobs, and some were already on their second request. Mira is at the bar chatting with Kinana while Gramps talks cheerfully with Macao and Wakaba. I continue looking around, surprised to see that Laxus and Bickslow aren't here yet.

"Guess I was quicker than I thought." I giggled, walking towards the mission board. Since my boyfriends were slow, I got to choose the mission. The board was full, despite everyone being out on jobs. I nod in greeting to Nab before scanning the fliers. There are a lot of small jobs, so I shouldn't have any problem finding something good. "Hmm, I wonder what I could choose that would play on all three of our strengths…"

Suddenly I see something that catches my eye. The word "ghost" is written in giant letters, and I grab the flier to read it.

 _Help us get rid of a ghost that has been disturbing our guests at Ume Spa!_

 _A frightening figure dressed in white only comes out at night, scaring people as they bathe in the spa. It has even attacked a few people, including our employees._

 _Please find a way to get rid of it!_

 _300,000 plus one room with a two night stay for free._

"Hell yes, this is perfect." I grin, glancing at the back to see the location of the village. I'd never been there before, but it was only a four hour train ride northwest of here. If the place was actually haunted, Bickslow could easily take care of it. If not, the three of us would have no issues finding out what it was and getting rid of it. As I walk over to the bar to get the approval from Mira, I see Bickslow and Laxus walk in. They both look around, and I wave as they finally see me and start walking towards me.

"You three going out on a mission today?" Mira asks as she finishes up with an order. I nod, leaning on the bar top and grinning as I hand her the flier. She glances over it and smiles "Oh, you guys are gonna have so much fun! This job is gonna be simple, plus you get to stay at a spa!"

"Exactly." I grin, turning to greet my boyfriends as Mira goes to log the mission in the book. "Hey slow pokes, I picked out a mission for us. You're gonna love it."

"As long as it's not some awful bodyguard deal, I'll be happy." Laxus grunted and I arched my brow in question at him. "Don't ask."

Bickslow cackles loudly "Oh god, I totally forgot about that! Don't worry (Y/n), I'll tell you about it later."

I could only giggle as Laxus rolled his eyes, grimacing. Mira returned with the flier, and wished us luck. We began to leave, saying goodbye to everyone before walking out of the guild. While we walked towards the train station I handed the mission paper to Bickslow, who grinned as he read it.

"Hell yes Stormy, this is gonna be sweet." He said, his babies repeating "Sweet, Sweet!" Bickslow then handed the flier to Laxus so the dragon slayer could read it as well.

Laxus nodded "Nice pick. I hope they have a unisex spa."

He winked as he handed the flier back to me, and I felt my cheeks heat up at the implications behind his statement. Bickslow laughed loudly, throwing his arm around me as I folded the paper and stuck it in my pack. We continued walking, reaching the station about ten minutes before the train was set to leave. Laxus bought us tickets, and we sat on a bench while we waited. It was early afternoon, so we'd get to Ume village a little before sunset. We'd be meeting the client right away so they could assign us a room and we could get all the details of the job. Tonight, we'd get started on helping the client with their ghost problem.

The train pulled up not long after we got there, announcing its arrival with a loud blow of the horn. It came to a stop, and soon we boarded. The three of us grabbed a private compartment, shutting the door and placing our bags under the seats. I sat beside Bickslow, his babies nestling into my lap as Laxus settled into the seat across from us, instantly putting on his sound pods and closing his eyes. The train began moving, and Laxus breathed in deeply to fight his motion sickness. I watched him with a frown, wishing I had some way to help.

"Ya know, I hear that when Natsu gets sick on trains, Lucy lays his head in her lap and strokes his hair." Bickslow said offhandedly with a sly grin. "Laxus zapped me every time I offered, but I bet it would help him."

I giggled, looking thoughtfully at Laxus. I could hear the music pounding from his sound pods. It was a song I was very familiar with, and I grinned. Seriously, I loved this man so much. I really did want to make him feel better. However, I look down at the totems in my lap and pout "I don't wanna disturb your babies though."

"Eh, they'll be okay. Come here babies." Bickslow said. The totems moved, but they seemed reluctant and if they had faces I was sure they'd be pouting. "(Y/n) needs to comfort Laxus, so you guys can hang out with me, alright?" The totems quietly repeated "Alright, alright."

I giggled, watching the interaction. He treated his babies like they were children sometimes. Briefly I wondered if any of the souls were children when they passed, but that thought was interrupted as the train shook and Laxus sucked in a breath and tensed. Bickslow watched me as I stood up, settling next to Laxus. The large man peeked one eye open to look at me, and I patted my lap. His eyes opened fully and he watched me for a moment, glancing at Bickslow. The seith mage smiled a genuine smile free of any teasing. Laxus sighed, before finally giving in to our wishes and moving. He laid on his back, putting his head on my lap and keeping his sounds pods on. I instantly moved my hands to his spiky hair, running my fingers through the blonde locks and being careful not to hit the sound pods. He breathed in deeply, only this time it was in delight.

"You two make a great couple." Bickslow said, grinning "Although I think you and I look the best together."

I laughed, looking down at Laxus as I laid my other hand on his chest. He placed his large hand on top of mine, holding it against him. I looked up at Bickslow and smiled. "I dunno, you and Laxus make a pretty sexy pair."

"I won't deny that baby!" Bickslow cackled, throwing his head back as he laughed "Man, I sure am a lucky man."

I smiled, winking at the seith mage. The rest of the train ride went by quickly. Laxus ended up falling asleep, and soon I joined him, my head resting against the window. Before I knew it, Bickslow was waking me with a kiss as we arrived at our destination. I slid Laxus's sounds pods off his head, calling his name quietly as I rubbed my hand against his chest. He opened his eyes to look at me, slightly muddied from sleep. My breath caught in my chest when he smiled at me, and I seriously could have stayed like that for the rest of my life; looking into his deep grey eyes while his sharp teeth glinted behind his grin. It was stunning.

"C'mon Stormy, you'll have plenty of time to eye fuck Laxus tonight in the spa." Bickslow chuckled as he grabbed our bags. Laxus and I rolled our eyes before we both stood up and took our packs from Bicks. The three of us made our way off the train with Bickslow's totems following along behind us. We headed straight to the Ume spa, where the client was waiting for us.

"Welcome Fairy Tail wizards, we're so glad to have you." The man greeted us warmly. He was a tall, lanky man with jet black hair and a square jaw. He had slanted greens eyes and a pleasant smile. We took turns introducing ourselves, shaking the gentleman's hand. "My name is Vincent. Thank you so much for taking the request. This apparition has caused us so many problems!"

"So what makes you think it's a ghost?" Laxus asked.

Vincent sighed "Well, the thing only comes out in the night. Guests and employees report a chilling aura and a disembodied voice before a white figure appears. A few times, when confronted, the ghost has physically attacked people. I've had many good employees and regulars leave and refuse to come back."

"That's terrible." I frown, shaking my head sadly "Don't worry, we'll figure out what this thing is doing here and get rid of it."

"Is there any reason you can think of why this ghost would be sticking around here?" Bickslow asked "Anything strange happen recently?"

His babies loudly repeated "Strange, strange" and I could only giggle at Vincent's weary glance at the totems. He probably hadn't expected them to speak at all.

"Hmm..." Vincent furrowed his brows, rubbing his sharp chin thoughtfully as he ignored the souls "I suppose there was a guy that gave me an odd feeling. He came through here one night when we were busy, demanding a room. We had nothing available, and he got visibly upset when we turned him away. But I don't know if that's connected."

The three of us exchanged glances, internally sighing in annoyance. This job could turn out to be more than we thought. If that man had cursed the place, it would be really difficult to get rid of the apparition. Or he could be a necromancer, which meant we'd need to find him and take him down. Either way, this would take some time.

"Well, that does help us with figuring out where to start." I said, crossing my arms "Tonight we'll check everything out and hopefully find what's causing this ghost to haunt the place."

"Good, good." Vincent nodded, smiling gratefully "If it ends up taking you guys more time, we'd be happy to let you stay for free as long as you need to. It's a small price to pay for the safety of my guests and employees. Not to mention, getting my business back."

"We appreciate that sir!" I smiled politely, nudging Laxus when he continued looking annoyed. He simply frowned more, looking away as Bickslow quietly snickered.

"Yeah, thanks." Laxus muttered. I glared at him, a bit mad that he was being so impolite towards the client.

"Right, well let me show you to your room!" Vincent said, ignoring the tense atmosphere "I'm assuming you guys are aware you'll have to share, correct?"

"Yup, that won't be an issue at all." Bickslow responded, grinning widely. The man cocked his brow in question, but didn't say anything.

We were then led down a long corridor to the left where our room would be. He opened up the door and the three of us walked in, looking around. It was very open, with a few thickly padded bed rolls and a small little table with fluffy cushions to sit on placed in the center of the room. There was a door leading to a small bathroom on the right side, and another door that led to the patio that surrounded the hot springs. On the left side of the room there was a large wardrobe with a few robes inside, and a dresser with a mirror next to it.

"I'll let you guys get situated! Unfortunately I won't be around tonight, gotta get home to the wife." Vincent said as we began setting our packs down "If you have any questions, my evening secretary at the front desk will be happy to help you. Her name is Annette."

"Thanks again sir." I said, bowing slightly. When he left, Laxus sighed and I spun around, crossing my arms and glaring at him "What's your problem? He offered to let us stay as long as we needed to for free."

"Yeah, that's the _least_ he could do." Laxus responded "This is gonna be a pain in the ass if we have to take out another mage. We should be charging him more than 300,000 jewels."

"Eh, it won't be so bad." Bickslow said, shrugging "If it's a necromancer, he's probably working alone and should be easy to defeat. But the mission only says we have to get rid of the ghost. We may be able to do that without even needing to find the guy."

Laxus rolled his eyes, and I frowned deeply as I watched him. This shitty attitude was something I hadn't seen from Laxus in a while. It was reminiscent of the way he used to act, and I wondered if there were always going to be little things I noticed in him that reminded me of the old Laxus. "Why are you being so rude? The money is enough for us to live off of until we group back up with Evergreen and Freed for a big mission, and we don't have to pay for the room or the spa. So seriously, what's the problem?"

Laxus looked at me, his brow furrowed. After a moment, he blinked and ran his fingers through his hair, his expression calming "I don't even know. I just get annoyed when clients try to screw mages over by offering them less than what a job is worth."

After a moment I nodded, his explanation helping me to understand why he was acting so impolite. "I get that. It's something I had to deal with a lot when you guys were gone, so I've just learned to grin and bear it I guess. As long as I got paid, it didn't matter to me. Missions were already scarce, so you couldn't be picky…"

Laxus frowned, and Bickslow hugged me into his side. The seith mage pouted as he spoke "Man, I always forget how bad you guys had it during that time."

"Yeah..." Laxus said, looking guilty "I'm sorry for being an ass."

"No, don't be." I shook my head, pulling away from Bickslow "You're just looking out for our best interests. Thank you… But maybe next time, try to tone it down alright?"

I offered a smile, and Laxus chuckled, pulling me in to kiss my cheek "Got it."

With that, we all started to unpack our belongings. Laxus and Bickslow started to argue about who would get the top drawers of the dresser. So, I took the chance and began putting my clothes in. The two had deadpanned when they saw me finish, and decided to do rock-paper-scissors for the second drawer. I found myself smiling contently as I watched them. These little moments together honestly meant so much to me. Bickslow and Laxus were so fun to be around.

It was evening now, so we decided to head into town to get some food. The spa didn't have a place to eat, so we walked a few blocks away to a place that had Chinese take-out. Laxus paid for us once again, and I made a mental note to repay him as soon as I had money. I really wondered just how much jewel the dragon slayer had. He seemed to be pretty frugal, and with his s-class missions and no rent payments, he had to have a ton saved up.

The food came out relatively quickly, and Bickslow carried the bags as we made our way back to the spa. As we walked in, the secretary greeted us warmly. I couldn't help noticing the suggestive smile she gave to Laxus, and shook my head in exasperation. Seriously, if I didn't trust him so much I'd be a bit worried. The man constantly attracted attention.

Bickslow noticed my irritation and grinned "Stormy, I wonder if you ever notice all the looks you get from men when we go out."

I give him a surprised look and Laxus sighs "Honestly, I can't believe you don't. If it weren't for us scaring them off you'd get harassed constantly."

The mental image of my two boyfriends giving mean looks to guys pops into my mind and I giggle. I can only imagine how frightening it would be to get on their bad side. "I never realized."

"Yeah, that's pretty obvious." Laxus responds as we walk into our room. "And they say _I'm_ oblivious."

I roll my eyes, trying to think back to all the times I'd gone out with the two. Before them, there were some guys who would approach me, and I can't help but remember the instance with that Sabertooth mage in Honeywort. Since then, I'd not had another occurrence like that. I'd also barely been out without having Laxus or Bickslow with me, which was probably why. The realization makes me giggle. Those two had been scaring people off this whole time and I didn't even notice it.

Bickslow set the food down on the small table, and we gather around it to eat. We take our time, enjoying the carefree atmosphere before we'd have to get to work. The ghost only comes out in the middle of the night, so we had time to kill before we had to start. After eating we change into the fluffy robes and start exploring the spa. Bickslow's babies follow along quietly. It was pretty slow, which was probably due to the ghost scaring any potential late night guests from leaving their rooms. The hot springs were sectioned off by gender, much to my two boyfriends' dismay.

"Well, we're gonna need to check out both sides of the spas to see if there might be a clue as to what's keeping the spirit here." Bickslow said, grinning. "So we can take a soak together tonight."

"Yeah, and get attacked by a ghost while we're all butt ass naked." Laxus responded "Sounds great."

I giggled, looking around "Yeah, I think we'll have to wait on the spa time. Honestly, there's no telling when or where this ghost will show up. We should probably split up and cover more ground."

Bickslow grimaced "I dunno Stormy. They said this spirit has attacked people. I don't want you getting hurt and us not being there to help you."

"Oh please. You think I can't handle a ghost?" I said, shooting him a disbelieving look. I went to speak again to tell him off, but felt something touch my back suddenly. My skin rose up in goosebumps and I nearly screamed. When I whirled around I saw Laxus deadpan, his hand in mid-air.

"Really (Y/n)?" He smirked, holding up his hand "I was just getting a piece of fuzz off your robe."

My face went red as the two men shared a glance before busting out with laughter. "Shut it you two!"

I huffed, fighting the embarrassment as I stormed off down the hallway. The two idiots kept laughing, eventually stopping long enough to call out to me. I ignored them, feeling annoyed. It seriously felt like they didn't trust me to be able to take care of myself. I understood that Laxus was protective, but even Bickslow was trying to tell me I couldn't do something.

"(Y/n), come back!"

"No!" I called, fuming. My magic started to act out, little sparks of lightning shooting off my body. It had been awhile since that happened, but I was so upset. "I'm tired of you guys treating me like I'm helpless. Do you forgot just how long I lived by myself, taking solo missions? Not once did I fail. So you guys can just go sit in the spa and relax cuz I'm going to do this job myself! I don't need you two!"

There was no response, and I had the slight urge to glance back and see what my boyfriends were doing. However, I kept walking, my arms crossed as I turned down a hallway towards the women's bath house. Hopefully they realized how annoyed I was with them constantly trying to shelter me. I wasn't some damsel in distress, always needing to be saved and protected from harm. I could easily take care of myself.

"If anything, Laxus is the damsel in distress." I muttered angrily. "He always has the Thunder Legion following him around to protect his ass."

As soon as the words left my mouth, I felt a pang of guilt. I was part of the Thunder Legion now, but here I was bad mouthing them. My teammates, my nakama. I'm not even sure why I got so upset. By now, I was totally used to being teased by those two. Why had it bothered me so much? Not to mention how drained I felt after losing control of my magic. It felt like something was soaking up the lightning, which reminded me of all the times Laxus had done that for me when I got upset. I slowed down, feeling tears of frustration fill my eyes. My emotions felt out of control and I had no idea why.

 _Feed the anger. Give in to the rage. Feel it flowing through you._

My stomach dropped at the disembodied voice, and I whirled around. However, there was nobody there. Actually, there was nothing there _at all_. I was suddenly surrounded with black walls, and the room started growing cold. I pulled my robe tightly against me as I shivered.

"God fucking dammit."

* * *

"Damn, she's really mad." Bickslow rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, and Laxus rolled his eyes at the man's obvious declaration.

"No shit."

"Should we go after her?"

Laxus frowned, staring down the corridor where their girlfriend had stomped off. They'd lost sight of her as she turned the corner. "Let her cool off. We'll scope out the other side of the building for a while and then go find her."

"She was really upset." Bickslow said, his babies sadly repeating his last word. "I wonder why she got so mad this time. I've never seen her react that way."

The two men went quiet as they began walking, thinking about the kindhearted and sometimes headstrong storm mage. She'd made it very clear why she was mad. Had they honestly been too overprotective? Laxus was always that way, but normally Bickslow was laid back. After seeing her die in his arms though, the seith mage had latched onto her side, afraid of what would happen if she left it. It never seemed to bother her before though, had it? They thought back to all the times she'd gotten annoyed with their protectiveness. Maybe they just hadn't realized how much she hated it. But they didn't act that way because they thought she was weak. They knew just how capable (Y/n) was. She was their girlfriend though, and they wanted to take care of her and carry the heavy burdens she'd held while they'd been trapped on Tenroujima.

"Do you think we should back off?" Bickslow muttered, glancing at Laxus "I mean, do you think we should start letting her go off and do her own thing more?"

Laxus stayed quiet for a moment, thinking about the man's question. "I don't know… I've never done this kind of shit before."

Bickslow snickered "Yeah, same. We're bad at this whole relationship thing."

"Eh, I think you're doing better than I am." Laxus responded, tucking his hands in his robe pockets as they walked the halls. "You and (Y/n) are so natural together."

Bickslow stopped, turning to the other man "But you two have such incredible chemistry. Honestly, I think she would have chosen you if we had made her choose."

Laxus's eyes went wide at his confession "Really? I think she would have picked you, considering the rocky past she and I had."

The two men both chuckled, shaking their heads. It seemed they never realized just how insecure the other guy had felt before agreeing to polyamory. They felt so lucky to have been able to have this chance with (Y/n). Bickslow's heart dropped when he realized they could be fucking it up by trying to keep their girlfriend chained to their side.

"We should go apologize."

They both stared at the other in shock, having said the same thing simultaneously. However, before they had the chance to do anything else, the lights flickered and they felt a surge in magic power coming from the direction (Y/n) had gone. Laxus cursed, and the two started to run towards the other side of the spa.

* * *

 _A/N: Oh dear. I just love a damsel in distress, not gonna lie. It's cliche but so fun to write. Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. I'm not entirely happy with it, but oh well._

 _So sorry for the delay! Updates are gonna be kinda slow, this story is starting to catch up to what I have written and I just don't always have the time/energy to write :( Also, writer's block is kicking my ass. I just wanna get to Tartaros ._


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